A Thousand Tales
by Kasimyr
Summary: The adventures of Aris(Slenderman) and Azen(A Demon). What awaits them as they travel between realms, speak with demon lords, fight enemies from the past, and find lost family? A sister story/continuation to Everyone Has a History.
1. For Better or Worse?

Hello! This is a sister story to Everyone Has a History and uses its characters. To avoid being confused, I'd recommend you read it first!

To the people who have read EHH, this is a continuation of Aris's storyline. While EHH focused more on their past, this will focus on their adventures, and give more insight to Aris's Slenderman form! I hope you guys enjoy! :)

-Kasimyr

I crept silently by the building, following Azen. The building was red and falling apart. It was short and wide, but a whole section of it was ripped off, so it might have been bigger in the past. I had a hard time believing anyone lived here, let alone the fact that we were about to assassinate them. I shivered and thought back to when I had been actually exited about this misson. Had it really only been a few days since I left brother with the Ents?

Azen stopped suddenly, jerking me out of my thoughts. "That window, three seconds." He whispered, glancing back. I nodded. Three seconds later we sprinted silently for the window. Azen waited a few minutes and then peeked into the window. A few moments later the window was open. "You first!" Azen said, smirking. Before I could react, he launched me through the window. I could barely suppress a yelp as I tumbled through the six-foot high window. I landed on the floor hard in what seemed to be a study. I glared at Azen as he lept in nimbly and landed on his feet.

Azen smirked down at me. "Are you planning to stay down there all day?" He whispered. I rolled my eyes and pushed myself up. "Remember the plan?" Azen said quietly, watching me. I nodded. The plan was for Azen to sneak up behind the target and "accidentally" make a noise. When the target turned and saw Azen, I was supposed to tackle the target, and then we would make the kill. The target was a blue-haired demon with a dark blue cloak and black underclothes. He was supposedly a traitor to "The Lord of the Demons" a mysterious figure that Azen said was similar to the king of the country I'd lived in, except he ruled the entire world of the demons along with a council. He was the one who gave Azen his occasional mission.

We walked along the wall stealthily, making no noise. We walked into room after room, looking for the target. We finally stumbled upon him in what looked like the kitchen. He was reading a huge leather-bound book that was titled: Torture Techniques using common tools. Azen motioned for me to stay put and snuck to a doorway behind the target. He started sneaking up behind him and "accidentally" scuffed his foot across the ground. The demon whipped around and stood up quickly, drawing a knife. I ran towards him and tackled him to the ground. Before I could smack his head against the ground to stun him, he twisted and my head hit hard against the stone floor. The demon smirked at Azen before jumping out a broken window.

I sat on the floor holding my throbbing head. "I'm sorry Azen, he was stronger than I expected..." Azen sighed and sat next to me. "Its fine. It'd be easier if we could get you to take your form." We had been practicing ever since we had left the Ent's forest, but I just couldn't seem to get it! "I'm trying! I should get it soon, right?" He looked at me. "Yes, you should've gotten it the first say..." His eyes brightened. "It's probably because you have an incredibly powerful form!" He looked at me seriously. "I don't want to push you though, take your time. It'll be a taxing form, probably." I nodded and let go of my still-aching head.

The next night I tried turning over and over into my other form, but it just didn't work! I hit the tree angrily for what seemed to be the fiftieth time. I watched Azen try and track the target using a map and some kind of spell. I sighed and started trying again, concentrating and failing. I thought I was going to go crazy before Azen stopped me with an "Aha!". I looked up. "What is it? Did you track him?" He grinned, "Yes! He's a few miles from here underground. We attack tomorrow night!" I frowned. "Sounds good, do we need a new plan?" He grinned.

Azen's wonderful plan was we do an all-out brutal attack at once. I tried countering with the fact that I knew practically nothing about demon hand-to-hand fighting. He just pinned me to the ground, sat on me, and told me to try and get up. About an hour later I finally got up by poking him in the back with a sharp stick. He just laughed and told me i was good for using my surroundings. Then we started with the hand-to-hand combat. By the morning, I knew I'd be too damn sore to fight. I fell asleep quickly, exhausted.

When I woke up the next night, I was sore just as expected. I groaned and sat up. Azen threw me a soul in a jar and I looked at it doubtfully. "How the hell do you eat these?" He stared at me. "You put it in your mouth and swallow. It's not difficult." I stuck my tongue out at him and examined the soul. It was a bit smaller than the ones I'd seen and a gray color. I opened the jar and put it like I was drinking from it. The soul slipped into my mouth. It tasted like a foggy morning. I swallowed it quickly and threw the jar back to Azen. "That's really weird. I prefer corn and meat myself." He rolled his eyes. "You'll get used to it."

We walked to his underground camp and slipped down a hole. We appeared in a single-room base with the guy who was still reading the same book, a long knife on the table. As soon as he saw us he stood with a knife. We both attacked simultaneously, trying to incapacitate him or slit his throat. What happened was a blur, my first true fight. All I knew was that one minute the target was doing his best to defend, the next he was holding a knife to a half-conscious Azen's throat. "Put the knife down." He said steadily, a smirk plastered to his face.

I glared at him and slowly crouched, putting my knife down. "On the floor." He said, still smirking. I glared at him, shot a glance at Azen, who was slowly being strangled, and then knelt on the floor. He stood up and started trying Azen up. I shut my eyes tightly. This couldn't be happening! There were two of us! I felt him pull me up and tie my hands to a hook on the ceiling. What was up with demons and tying people's hands over their heads? I couldn't help but smile at the similarity among demons.

"What's so funny?" The demon snarled, hitting my head hard with a closed fist. "Nothing" I managed to say, wondering what he was going to do. "I'd better get rid of you two now. Why not use you as practice first?" I stared, confused. What did he mean? My thoughts flashed to the book he'd been reading, and I felt the blood drain from my face. "I see that you know what I mean!" He said cheerfully as he pulled out an awl. He walked over to Azen, who was now wide-awake and spitting curses at him.

As the demon set the awl against Azen's skin I shut my eyes tightly. I just couldn't watch, I just couldn't. I heard Azen's sharp intake of breath as he stared digging it into his skin. I couldn't think. First He'd kill Azen slowly, and then I'd be next. I couldn't think anything except "No! No!". I could heard Azen's pained breath. I wished I could plug my ears. A few minutes later, Azen screamed. I felt like something broke inside of me, and I felt a warmth spreading.

The warmth grew to a painful heat and I started struggling as a shooting pain went through me. What was happening?! Was he burning me? The pain grew more intense as I felt myself growing. A few moments later it was all over. I tried to pull my hands down and the ropes easily broke. The next thing I noticed was the fact that my head was bent, and I was having to partially crouch. Then I noticed the tentacles. They were short and attached to my back, but I somehow knew how to control them already, just like it's instinct to control your arms and legs. I felt them grow out of my back and wait, posed behind me to strike. I tried to smile, but couldn't.

I held my snow-white fingers to my face. No eyes, ears, mouth, or nose. How could I be seeing or hearing like this? I noticed in front of me that my vision was clearer, and I was huge compared to them. I shot my tentacles out at the target, and they hit the wall. Ouch. Maybe I didn't know how to control them after all. The demon smirked. "Aha! You're new!" He lept towards me and stabbed my leg with his knife. I felt nothing, and shot my tentacles at him again. This time, the tentacles sharpened to a spear-like point, and he soon had eight huge holes in his body.

I retracted my tentacles and let his lifeless body slide to the ground. I broke the ropes holding Azen quickly and picked him up. I climbed the ladder quickly. Even though I was monstrously tall, I was incredibly skinny, and fit with ease. I carried Azen to camp with long strides and set him down. I decided to take advantage of the incredibly useful tentacles and bandage Azen's awl cuts with them. After it was done, I tried to go back to my other form. It took a few scary minutes, but I eventually got back to my normal form. I grinned to myself and laid on my bedroll, exhausted. I had finally used my form, and it had been incredible.


	2. A New Lord

It took a while to get Azen up the next morning, but he eventually sat up and helped me pack. We were about to head back to our home, which Azen kept reminding me was a "Base", not a home. I didn't care enough to pay attention. "Hey, nice job last night." Azen said suddenly, breaking the silence. I grinned at him, "Thanks! It was amazing. I'm glad I was finally able to do it!" He looked at me for a minute, and then broke into a smile. "I'm glad you like it. Now lets get back!" As he finished speaking, I noticed an object in the distance hurtling towards us at an incredible speed. I pointed. "Azen...?" He turned quickly, and then relaxed. He rolled his eyes.

"What is it?!" I asked, a bit nervous. "Its a mission!" Azen said, annoyed. "We just finished one!" I smiled. "They're fun though!" He rolled his eyes again and caught the object. I plucked it out of his hands and examined it. It was a tube of leather with a rolled up bit of parchment inside it. I pulled out the paper and read it. "It says we need to visit the demon lord!" I said happily. His eyes widened. "What?!" He snatched the parchment out of my hands and grew even paler. "We need to get back now. He doesn't call people for no reason, after all."

We sprinted league after league, and I marveled yet again at my unnatural speed and endurance. Being a Kerilin was amazing! After a few hours and many leagues, we had arrived at Tearswood Bridge. We slid into the gully and walked to the other side of the bridge. Azen activated the portal and we slipped through. We walked quickly to the home-portals and dropped off our bags. I watched Azen enter his room, and then walk out in clean clothes. "Do I need to change? Comb my hair? What do I need to do?" He rolled his eyes. "Nothing, the only reason I changed was because they were torn and bloody. Come on!"

We rushed out the door and to my surprise, out of the area with the portal-buildings. We started walking east on a long, straight, dusty path towards a tall distant building that I assumed was the palace. I was exited, I'd never been to a palace! I've never even met a noble, let alone a lord or a king! I could barely contain my excitement! Azen on the other hand was quiet and dark-eyed. Was he nervous? Scared? "Hey Azen, are you alright?" He started and looked up. "What?" I rolled my eyes. "Are you okay? You seem a bit nervous." He looked back down.

"I'm fine, just wondering why he wants to see us." I nodded. "I'm wondering too. Say, have you ever met him before?" Azen ignored me, staying quiet. After a few minutes, he spoke again. "Yes, he is very intimidating. Let me do most of the talking, that's the best way to keep out of trouble, alright?" I gave a confused nod. I supposed Azen knew best, being a demon himself. We climbed over a large hill and stopped at the crest, awed.

There was a huge castle ahead. It looked like something out of a storybook. It was black with red designs and details. There was a huge, deep moat filled with red liquid that I assumed was pheal, the red liquid the herbalist had talked about. It had a dark brown bridge that could be raised to block enemies from reaching the palace. It was currently down. There was a huge wall surrounding the castle made from gray stone, covered with carved patterns and dotted with marks that suggested attacks against the castle. I jolted as I realized that I had seen this castle before in a book Da had shown me while I was young.

I turned to tell Azen, but he was already halfway down the hill. I started running down, all thoughts of the storybook fading from my head. We walked up to the gate and stopped at a guard. Azen held out the bit of parchment he'd received and was allowed ahead. I followed him down a main hall. At the end of the hall there were two large doors, both red and carved intricately with silver-inlaid designs. Two guards opened up the door and let us in. Azen pushed my head down and we both walked up, heads down.

When we arrived a short distance from the throne, we bowed. A bored voice told us to hurry up. We stood up straight, Azen surprised. An impressive throne was in front of us, tall and black, inlaid with silver and rubies that made bizarre and beautiful patterns. The person in the throne surprised me. It was a kid. He looked to be about 14, with raven-black hair and dark orange-red eyes. This was the first demon I'd seen with eyes that resembled orange! Was that a royal-family thing? The kid was sitting with his back against the corner of the back and arm of the throne, his legs hanging over the other arm of the throne.

He was holding a dark brown wooden staff inlaid with silver. It was topped with a chunk of obsidian inlaid with five deep red rubies. He was smirking down at us, eyes sly. "I can see you're surprised, Azenvel. The Lord died today, assassinated in his sleep. I was next in line according to his wishes, so here I am. Would you like to hear why I ordered you here?" Azen bowed. "I'm sorry to hear of his death, my Lord. I'd like to hear why, if you'd be kind enough to tell me." I blinked. Azen was acting so polite! I'd never seen him like this, so... humble. The Lord of the Demons rolled his eyes. "Don't pull that shit with me, Azenvel. Be more natural, I'm already sick of all of the ass-kissing that goes on in this place."

I stared at him, a grin breaking over my face. I was starting to like this kid! Azen stared, surprise radiating from him. He grinned. "Yes, my Lord. What did you call me here for?" The kid started tapping his scepter against the throne, looking up into the air. "I fired all of the twenty advisers and helpers. Too much corruption. I'm making you one of them. I'm not sure which yet, but you will be one of them. Are you okay with that?"

Azen paused, in shock. "Y..Yes my lord, that's perfectly fine!" The kid nodded, and his smirk grew wider. "I read your files, you seem like a perfect choice... especially seeing as your mentor was Seran." Azen's expression froze, becoming unreadable. "Never mind that. I also see that you have a kerilin." He turned to me. "Aris, right?" I nodded. "Yes my Lord." He laughed quietly, and I paused. Had I said something wrong? "You are a Seriarores, correct? A slender-being? One of the only two in existence?" I nodded again, nervous. "Yes my lord, although I've only transformed twice, once by my own will, once against my will.

He shot me a curious glance and shrugged. "I will ask you later. For now, we need to decide where to put you. I think you need to follow in Seran's footsteps, what do you think? Azen was silent for a few moments. "Whatever you think is best, Lord." The young lord grinned, seeming to be enjoying himself. "You're moving to home 3 than! Its been stripped bare, but you're free to decorate as you please, no restrictions. Go now, I need to talk to another prospective adviser." Azen and I bowed, and then left. We started walking back to the portals, silent.

When we arrived at the home portal building, Azen stopped. "Aris? Please... I need to be alone for a while. Can you go back to our base and pack everything up? If you put it all in the main room, it'll be automatically transferred to our new base. Just make sure to have it all in there by sunset. Oh, and don't be in the room. Meet me here before sunset. Please." I paused. Why was he so nervous about this? I didn't know much about his mentor, but he obviously had meant a lot to Azen. "Alright, I will meet you here an hour before sunset!"

I watched Azen walk slowly down a flight of steps. I wanted to help him, but I just didn't know how. I sighed and walked to our base stone. I pressed my hand against the stone, and the portal popped up. I jumped in and felt the warmth and saw the colors, just as usual. It was just something you couldn't get used to! I appeared in our base and walked to Azen's room to get started packing. I opened the door and froze, terrified. A snowy-haired smirking demon was laying on the bed, toying with one of Azen's paintings, slowly tearing it up. It was the bastard again. Reyvis. I pulled out my knife. This bastard was going to pay for what he did last time I'd seen him.

Hey guys! Little side note here, I'd like to thank Transformersgirl4538 for inadvertently giving me the idea to write this side story! Thank you!

-Kasimyr


	3. Beneath Your Feet

I stood tensely as he pushed himself off the bed. "What the hell do you want?!" I asked angrily. He smirked. "I was hoping Azen would come. It's a shame it's only you." I glared at him. "Only me, hmm?" He laughed. "His weakling Kerilin! Where is he? I need to talk to him!" I paused. I wanted to show off and tell him that we'd talked to the Lord, but I wasn't sure if I was allowed. "We were promoted past your lowly status!" He grinned. "Oh yeah? Nice try, human." I rolled my eyes. "Too stupid to get my species right? I'm no longer completely human, dumbass. Get out." He laughed scornfully. "No! I'm staying until Azen gets here!" I sighed. "Don't make me force you."

He raised an eyebrow. "You? Force me?" He doubled over laughing. I grinned at him and started changing into my Slender-being form. He paled considerably, and the mirth drained from his face. "Haha, what are you? A slender human? Slenderman?" I paused, thinking. I liked that, actually! I would call this form slenderman from now on! Reyvis backed up, knife poised to attack. A tentacle shot out, and he sliced it off. I braced for pain, but none came. My tentacle grew back a few seconds later. If I could've grinned, I would've.

Three tentacles shot out, he cut off another, but the other two wrapped around his wrists tightly, causing him to cry out in pain and drop the knife. Another tentacle wrapped around his throat, lifting him off the ground. I slammed him into the wall a few times, and then flung him out the door into the sitting-room-library. He hit a bookshelf, causing books to fly everywhere. Damnit. I wrapped my tentacles around his wrists and stepped forward, grabbing some rope. I tied him to a hook in the wall. Every time my long white fingers touched his skin he shuddered and glared at me, unnerved.

After I finished, I tried turning back into my normal form. I couldn't do it. I concentrated and tried over and over. It was many horrifying and nerve-racking minutes before I finally turned back into my normal form. I ignored Reyvis and started piling furniture into the main room. It took me an hour to get everything into the center room, and another half-our to empty the drawers. When I was done, I started walking out. Reyvis stopped me. "Hey! You can't just leave me here!" He had a panicked look in his eyes.

"You're moving, right?! Living things cannot be in the area that will be transferred!" I rolled my eyes. "Give me one good reason I should let you live." He gave a faint smile. "Azen would be depressed without me." I snorted and turned around. "We've been rivals since we first met. We've known each other our whole lives. We may be enemies, but if he died, I wouldn't know what to do with my life. I'd almost call him my friend if I didn't hate him." I glanced back around. That was surprising to me. I thought they'd hated each other! Apparently it was more like a semi-friendly type of hatred. I hadn't expected him to open up to me like that, and I didn't know what to do.

"What about him killing your friend?" He looked confused for a moment, and then shrugged. "Oh, I lied about that. Sorry. He killed my fish on accident, does that count?" I rolled my eyes. "Whatever!" I untied him and pushed him out of the room. We both stepped into the storage room just as the center room shimmered, and everything disappeared. "What happens if you are in there when that happens?" I asked quizzically. He frowned. "It's a fate worse than death. You are lost forever in a portal-like place, weakened and alone." I shivered. "That sounds terrible."

He nodded and grinned at me. Before I could react, he attacked me, jamming his fingers into certain pressure points. When I regained my balance, I realized I couldn't change into my slenderman form. What had he done?! He smiled. "It only lasts about ten minutes!" I glared at him, backing up with my knife in hand. He easily batted the knife out of my hands and grabbed my arm, twisting it behind my back and causing me to cry out. He tied my hands quickly behind my back and started walking to the portal, pulling me by the throat.

"I thought I just saved you from a fate worse than death!" I exclaimed, furious. He just grinned. "So you did! Tell me where Azen is." I narrowed my eyes at him. "Hell no!" He smirked dangerously. "I'll just take you to my place then! Azen will have you come looking for you." I started struggling. This bastard! How many minutes had gone by? Definitely not ten! He hit me hard over the head, and I almost blacked out. I followed him dizzily to the portal and went through. We appeared in the portal building and I was pulled to another portal, where he threw me in.

I appeared in a surprisingly cheerful place. It was exactly the same layout as Azen's, but decorated differently. The carpet was red, and they walls were a dark gray. There were many black bookshelves, all holding neat-looking alphabetized books. There was one dark red couch and two black soft chairs, all in a circle around a small fireplace in the center of the room. Where did all the smoke go? I glanced around. All three rooms had doors, so I couldn't see into the storage room.

I didn't need to worry about the storage room however, because that's where he took me. I walked in and blinked. The storage room was much smaller, just a narrow strip of drawers and boxes. He opened a door on the side and pushed me in. My eyes adjusted to the dim light, and I saw that it was a little dungeon. The walls were gray carpet, but the walls were stripped bare to gray stone. There were chains and wall-rings everywhere, a few mysterious locked boxes, and a single bookshelf. It was completely devoid of living things, besides us.

He chained me to the wall with some slack and left, leaving me with two candles, a creepy room, and depression. I sat there for hours, bored out of my mind. Time had seemed to stop, and minutes felt like hours. It was like being trapped in a frozen hourglass. After a while, I got fed up and stretched as far as I could, reaching for the closest locked box. After a few tries and a lot of straining, I was able to pull it closer and examine it.

It was a simple metal lock, and I quickly set to working on it. I scavenged for small metal bits, but found nothing, I eventually got fed up and pulled hard. It came off easily, probably rusted on the inside. I looked inside the box and almost threw up. Torture devices. Reyvis was a madman! I closed the lid and pushed the box far away in disgust. I curled into a ball and tried to sleep, thinking about possible methods of escape.

I woke up to a pissed-off Azen nudging me with his foot. "How the hell do you fall asleep in these situations?!" I grinned sleepily at him. "It's boring in here!" I stood up, but couldn't move more than a few feet because of the chains. He rolled his eyes walked away. "Hey!" I called out. He didn't stop. He walked back a few hours later with a key and released me. "Sorry about getting captured, Azen! That bastard took me by surprise after I saved him!" He glanced at me, puzzled. "That sounds like something he'd do, but what did you save him from?"

I shrugged. "From being in the main room while the stuff was all being transferred to our new base." His eyes widened. "What?! It's a good thing you saved him, then! Nobody deserves that." I frowned. "How do they know what happens if nobody has ever come back?" Azen smiled at me. "Ever the thinker, are you? One person has come back. He was utterly insane, and barely able to blubber about what'd happened to him. Poor guy." We went through the portals and to the staircase leading to the "Restricted" portals. "So Azen," I asked curiously, "How long was I gone?" He thought for a few minutes. "Nine or ten hours total!" I rolled my eyes. "Of course. Did you get anything done?

Azen glared at me. "Of course! I organized everything." We went down the staircase and to the third portal. He opened the portal and we went through. I landed on soft black carpet with a curious hollow thump.I stood up, confused. I stomped my foot hard, and there was a deep ringing noise. "Is there a room or something under here?" I asked. He looked at me sadly. "Just a huge empty space, nothing more." I looked around. I was in a huge circular room with a large dome at the top painted a uniform navy blue color.

I looked around the sides and saw 4 perpendicular to each other. One hall had one door, one had two, one had three, and the last had four. It was a very peculiar layout, to say the least. I turned to Azen, who was walking to the second hall. He opened a door and smiled peculiarly at me. "This was my room while I was an apprentice, it's your's now. I have the room across the hall." I looked inside. It was a larger version of my old room, with all of the same furniture. I grinned. "Thanks Azen! Sure you want to give up all the memories?" I was joking, but Azen flinched and walked into his room, slamming the door behind him.

I looked at his door, shocked. I thought he'd be exasperated, not hurt! I felt terrible for doing that to him. I walked down the hall, leaving him to calm down. I examined the circular main room, determined to find a way to the secret space below. I peeked into every door, finding a library, washing room, multiple storage rooms, and a few locked doors. I tried the locked door, but nothing would budge. My search for keys turned nothing, so I simply examined the walls for any indention. A few hours of searching, I found something.

In the indention in the wall where the portal-stone was, there was also a faint crease in the wallpaper. I examined it for a few minutes, and then flipped open my knife and started cutting the wallpaper. I peeled off the rectangle of paper and grinned. I'd been right. I pulled hard on the door, causing chips of old stone to break off and clatter to the floor. I took a look around inside. It was only a ladder. I shrugged and started walking down the ladder, hoping it was still strong.

After a few minutes I reached the bottom. There was another door, which I promptly kicked open. I froze at the sight. Dead trees were everywhere, some broken and collapsed. The dirt was too dry, all the nutrients gone. There was a crusty dry riverbed filled with fish skeletons. As I walked out, pale yellow grass crunched under my feet. I looked up past dead branches and saw the a huge glass circle covered by the underside of black carpet. Was the main room's floor supposed to be a view of this?! I looked around the dead forest once again.

I walked around, seeing a small dried pond, what used to be a garden, and a small rotting village for creatures one-fourth my size. Everywhere I looked I saw skeletons. Foxes, rabbits, a panther, mice, birds, even what seemed to be an Ent! More than once I had heard a crunch and looked down to see what had used to be a mouse or squirrel. I had stopped to explore a cave once and had seen a few human skeletons. I could tell they were human because of the teeth. They weren't demon-sharp. Everywhere I looked, I saw death. I eventually just sat by the dry, cracked riverbed and shut my eyes.

What had happened here?! I had heard that his mentor was an amazing person! This was obviously the doing of whoever had taken the place of his mentor after his death! I slammed my fist against the hard sand. He had probably cut the water flow and closed air vents! He was a murderer of so many creatures! I absolved to ask Azen who'd taken over. I would ask the damned Demon Lord himself if Azen didn't know! I sprinted away from all the death and climbed up the ladder in a hurry, rushed to find Azen.

I ran to his room and knocked. "Azen! I'm sorry for what I said! Please come see what I found!" He opened the door, looking tired. "What!" I pulled him to the ladder. He raised an eyebrow at me. "Well that didn't take you long, did it?" He started owalking off again, apparently not impressed. "No! Go down! Come on!" He sighed. "I know exactly what it looks like, I tended to it with my mentor for years when I was young. I know it like the back of my hand." I paused. He didn't know. He expected it to all be alive. He didn't know... This was terrible.

I pushed him onto the ladder, causing him to yelp and grab a rung before he fell. He sighed and started going down, looking annoyed. He reached the bottom and opened the door. I watched him freeze. His face go expressionless. He walked out and stared at everything, taking in just how much had died. He walked expressionless around the whole area, looking at everything, all of the skeletons. He examined the pond, and then walked to where the Ent's body was. He stared for a moment until he realized what it used to be. He froze again. Then he sank to his knees and burst into tears.


	4. Renewal

I stood there for more than a minute, shocked. I'd only rarely seen Azen act differently than his usual condesending self, and I'd never seen him sad, let alone crying. I stood there, unsure of what to do. He was obviously upset! I ran over and knelt by him. "Azen...?" He didn't react, and the sobbing just increased. I could tell he wanted to be alone. I backed up and whispered, "I will be in my room... I'm sorry." I glanced one last time at him kneeling, head in hands, and ran off. I climbed the ladder quickly and ran to my room, feeling horrible. I just _had _to go open the door, didn't I? I should have just left it alone. Why did I have to be so damn stupid?! I knew it'd upset him!

I threw myself on my bed and tried to think rationally. He would've gone down sooner or later, right? It wasn't like I'd killed them myself! I sighed. Who had taken over after his mentor's death? Maybe his room would have clues? Hopefully Azen didn't get rid of everything yet. I ran over to Azen's room and quickly examined it. Damnit. Completely clean and set up. I sighed again, thinking. Where did he put the rest of the stuff? I quickly ran to a storage room and started opening drawers. All of Azen's stuff. I ran to a different storage room and threw open a drawer.

It wasn't Azen's, that was for sure. There were just stacks of research papers on multiple subjects, mostly on the human world. I ruffled through a few other drawers and found another fact. There were two people who had written papers. One was named Seran Diarel, the other was named Leace Keriv. I glanced through a few more papers. All of Seran's were older, so Seran had to be Azen's old mentor. Leace was the murderer. I grabbed a stack of Seran's and Leace's papers and ran to my room, curious about both of them.

I began reading through them. Seran seemed like a casual, friendly, funny person by the way he wrote. Leace seemed very cold and calculated, very detached from emotion. You could tell a lot by how a person wrote. Most of the subjects were boring, and I couldn't follow them. I found a single one written by Azen in the stack that I must have grabbed by accident. Why was Azen's work in there? I examined it carefully. It wasn't very well written, and it was more than a hundred years old! How old was Azen?! I sighed and put the papers away, tired. I slipped into bed and blew out the candle, falling asleep instantly.

The next morning I woke up to a huge crash. I jumped out of bed and sprinted to the source of the noise; the library. I opened the door and ran in, scared of what I might find. One of the shelves had fallen, and hundreds of books had flewn everywhere. I looked around, wondering what had happened. Where was Azen? I froze. Was he under...? "Azen?! Azen?! Are you in here? Are you okay?!" I heard a muffled sigh, and immediatley felt releived. Azen spoke again, voice comically muffled. "Yes, but It'd be nice if somebody, hmm, maybe pushed this huge shelf off of me?" I rolled my eyes and lifted the shelf up long enough for Azen to crawl out. It was heavy!

I watched Azen stand up and dust himself off, looking angry. "What happened?" I asked, barely able to keep from smirking. He still glared at me. "I was trying to reach a book. The book was stuck. Very stuck. The bookshelf fell." I rolled my eyes. "What book was it?" He held out a book and I accepted it. I flipped through it and my eyes widened. It was written by Seran, and it was a manual about the underground mini-world. I quickly handed it back to him. "What are you trying to do?" He smiled softly. "Fix it." I nodded. "Need any help?" He looked at me for a few moments, and then grinned. "Just don't get in my way."

We climbed down the ladder and walked to the river's origin point, which was a hole in the wall. He examined a passage in the book and grinned. He walked over to large gray boulder and wiped away some dirt at the base. He pressed a small button and covered it back up. About thirty seconds later, a hole in the wall opened up, and we ducked inside. I froze, staring in awe. There was a six-foot wall of dull gray mass. There were objects made of weird material sitting everywhere, and you couldn't take two steps without trampling papers. It looked alien.

I turned to Azen. "What the hell is all of this?! It's not from this world!" He smiled at me. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone this, but you're my Kerilin, so its fine I suppose. My mentor's partner's form was able to travel through time. All of this is technology from many hundreds of years into the future." I looked at him, wondering if he was insane. My head was spinning from all of this, it was just so weird. It almost seemed stranger than the existance of demons. I smiled faintly. "That's nice." he rolled his eyes and sat in a chair. "My mentor taught me about all of this stuff while I was with him. I know how to keep it up and running, but I had no idea how to set it up and fix it, so I needed the manual."

I blinked. "Thats incredible!" He grinned at me. "It certainly is." He paused and glanced at me. "Aris... I'm sorry for breaking down like that. I should have had better control over myself, I apologize." I shrugged. "It's fine, I don't mind. I'm here to help, right?" I grinned at him, and his eyes softened. "Whatever." He turned back, smiling. He pressed a button on a strange object in front of him and it lit up. I stepped back. Were there candles inside?! How did that work?! "What the hell is that, Azen?" He smiled at me, probably remembering his first day. "It's a computer, it runs on electricity." I stared at him, even more confused. He opened a drawer and ruffled through it, pulling out a book. "It's a bit confusing, but it explains computers, electricity, and wiring. Read it!" I sighed and began reading the book.

It took me more than six hours to read the damn thing. I was still a bit confused, but I figured I knew enough. Computers proccessed ones and zeros into commands, and were able to solve incredible mathmatical problems and run whole continents. They ran on electricity, which is energy. It was kind of like how food powered us. Azen was still messing with the computer. I sat down by him and watched numbers and words cross the screen, Azen typing quickly at the keyboard. After forty-five or so minutes, he gave a cry of triumph. "The water is on!" I wondered what had taken so long, but decided to not say anything. We walked out of the hole in the wall and stared. "That's a lot more than water, Azen." I mumbled.

Crystal-clear water had started flowing out of the hole, but that was the least impressive thing. The dull gray ceiling had come to life, and was now a light blue sky dotted with white fluffy clouds. The clouds even moved! There was a bright sun that looked exactly like the human realm's, and I could feel the heat from it! It was much warmer and brigher, and I even felt a small breeze! It would've been a perfect paradise if not for all of the dead trees and all of the skeletons. I could tell Azen was thinking about it too. He had walked out with a happy expression, but was now walking back in, looking stony-faced.

He began reading the manual again, and after a few minutes, his face lit up. "That's incredibe!" he practically leaped out of his chair, grinning. I looked at him, startled. "What?!" He grinned happily at me, eyes shining with joy. "My mentor could be very lazy sometimes! He must've not wanted to have to replace everything if something went wrong and it all died, so he added a genetic code into everything living! If anything died, he could just send out a certain frequency, and whatever died would repair itself! This technology is incredible! He must have went a hundred thousand years into the future for it!"

I grinned happily at him. "That's amazing! Can you do it?!" He smirked at me. "Don't doubt me, dammit!" He began to work, his eyes still shining with joy. A few hours later he stood up. "Let's go see if it worked!" We walked outside, and his eyes filled with disappointment. Nothing had happened. He glanced back inside, and sighed. "I tried everything." He sat agaisnt the boulder and closed his eyes, seemingly exhausted. "Well, you still were able to get the water and sky working! That's amazing!" He shrugged. "I guess." I sat by him and watched the clouds.

About ten minutes after Azen fell asleep, something happened. I noticed a speck of green appear by the river and walked up to it. A beautiful blade of grass, green and very much alive. My eyes widened as I saw the green start to spread, and soon all of the grass I could see was a deep, living green. The trees that had fallen did nothing, but the ones still standing grew fresh bark, and leaves started growing quickly. A few seconds later, I saw a vole dart into a leafy green bush. I saw a fox and her kits grow out of skeletons into living, breathing creatures and walk into their den. It was amazing, but it also just seemed wrong. Life out of death.

I nudged Azen until he woke up. He opened his eyes and glared at me, but then he froze before saying anything. He slowly turned his head and surveyed everything, his eyes growing from dull to shining. Everything was better now.


	5. The Barefooted Lord

Hey guys! Sorry for such a long wait, I was sick with the flu. I'm typing out as many chapters as I can tonight! I can type three if I can stay awake long enough, I swear! Sorry for the wait, and I hope you enjoy the next chapter! (My editor, SheNinja, says hello!)

-Kasimyr

He quickly stood and stared at the surrounding scene. "Incredible!" he murmured. "It actually worked!" I stared at him. "You didn't think it'd work?!" He shrugged and grinned. "I had to try something! I shouldn't have doubted Seran!" I smiled. "Your mentor?" His face fell, and he nodded. Azen stepped into the woods and ran off, leaving me at the boulder.

I watched him disappear for a moment, and then walked into the building. I was determined to find out how this amazing "Technology" worked. I stopped in front of the wall of gray mass I had seen earlier. Now that I'd read the book on computers, I realized that the "Lumps and textures" I'd seen were actually buttons, switches, and levers. I was about to press a button when I realized I might screw everything up. What could be reversible? A lever? I grinned and flipped a lever.

I ran outside to see the result. The clear, blue water flowing out was now green and poisoned. Dammit. I sprinted back inside and pushed the same lever back up, and then ran back outside. The poisonous-looking water was flowing in a murky patch down the river, but it was quickly thinning out into freshly-flowing beautifully clear water. Good, I didn't ruin everything! I resolved to be more careful as I walked back into the room and picked up a stack of books.

It was about six hours later that I finally climbed the ladder and fell asleep. The next morning I woke up to Azen shaking me violently. Bastard. I sat up quickly, rubbing sleep out of my eyes. "What?!" I asked irritably. He just grinned. "We have a mission!" I paused and narrowed my eyes at him. "Why are you so excited about a mission? You usually groan about them." He smirked. "I'm an adviser now! I haven't opened the mission yet, I was waiting for you!" I couldn't resist a grin, he was so exited!

"Fine!" I grumbled, sliding out of bed and dressing quickly. I walked outside to meet Azen, who was holding a small blood-red envelope. As soon as I sat down he ripped it open, eyes bright with excitement. He quickly read it and handed it to me.

To Adviser Three, Azenvel, and his partner, Aris

Its's time for you two to get to work. These will be your first orders, and I'm bored. Come visit me at your earliest opportunity. If you've read a book on politics, you'd know that means to get your asses over here now. I've attached an access slip to this card, keep it with you at all times.

-Demon Lord, Tyren

I handed the card back to the silent Azen. I studied him for a few moments. "What's wrong?" he suddenly broke out laughing so hard that tears ran down his face. "I love this kid! It's so refreshing to have a fun Lord!" I smiled and shook my head. Azen could be very confusing. "I'd imagine it's much better with an interesting Lord." He smirked. "The last one was interesting too, don't get me wrong! This new kid is just... better." I frowned, confused. "Better? What?" Azen just chuckled and activated the portal.

We stepped through the portal and, instead of walking to the stairs, we walked to the far wall. "Azen? This is just a blank wall! Why are we going here?" He grinned happily. "He gave us an access slip!" He held up a square of white paper with a fingerprint, signature, symbol, and a red ribbon. "So?" I asked. "What does that have to do with anything?" As if in reply, he smirked and pressed the slip of paper into the wall. It sank into the wall, activating a pure white portal. Azen seemed to concentrate for a moment, and then the portal flared with it's typical bright fiery colors.

I jerked back, startled. "How did you do that?!" He laughed. "It's a portal that can switch destinations! Very hard to create. The slip allows me to use it!" I smiled, "That's amazing!" Azen chuckled and stepped through the portal with me close behind. The portal wasn't any different from any other portal, it was the same swirling warmth and color. We popped out in a small cave, which Azen quickly escaped using a hidden button.

I was very confused at this point, and was almost grateful to see the terrifying palace. Azen displayed the black card written by the Lord to the guard, who immediately let us through. We walked quickly through the hall towards the throne room. One of the guards outside the throne room stopped us and stepped through the doorway. "Lord of the Demons, Tyren Welre Daemeticus the fif-" An annoyed voice from inside cut him off. "Damn you! That is the third time today! I already told you, call me Lord Tyren! Long names are ridiculous! Damned imbecile!" I saw the guard flinch and Azen grin. Azen was having a lot of fun.

We walked into the room, heads low. When we got to the end of the hall, we bowed fully. "What the hell did I tell you two last time?" An annoyed voice from the throne said. "Stand the hell up!" We stood quickly, Azen hiding a smile. "Yes, my lord. The kid sighed. "I was hoping you'd make my mood better, not worse! Do you know how annoying it is in here?" Azen shook his head. "I couldn't even imagine. Maybe you need a playmate?" I almost gasped. Azen was taking a risk! Why would he speak that way to the Lord of all Demons?!

To my relief, and to Azen's, the kid just laughed. "Azen, you're quickly becoming my favorite plaything. Is that close enough?" I saw strange emotions flash through Azen's eyes, and he bowed before I could identify them. "Of course, Lord Tyren! I inspected the lord closely. He was wearing pure black loose clothing, a dark red cloak bearing the royal seal, and had no shoes. He was barefooted. I couldn't help but smile at the sight, and he noticed immediately.

The Lord raised an eyebrow. "The silent Kerilin thinks I'm funny, hmm? What's so humorous about me?" I could see a glimmer of humor in his eye, but I could also tell it might take a dark twist if I wasn't careful. I decided to go for the honesty. "I noticed you were barefooted. I've just never expected royalty to disregard shoes while having visitors!" The kid rolled his eyes. "You're a strange one. I can do whatever I want, why should I have to wear shoes while sitting in a chair?" I paused. "I suppose I've never thought about it that way! I apologize, I've never had any experience with important people before meeting you."

The kid laughed quietly. "I'm not much different from Azenvel or any other demon, I just happened to be chosen." I frowned. "Chosen?" The Lord laughed. "I happened to be found on on the road as the king was passing by. He raised me and chose me to be the next Lord, resulting in my different eye color." I nodded sadly. "I'm surprised he didn't have any children!" The kid looked puzzled. "What do you mean?" Azen smiled quickly at the Lord. "Let me explain, my Lord." The kid nodded, still puzzled."

"Aris..." Azen began, looking rather annoyed. "Demons do not reproduce like humans. We aren't quite sure how, but demons just appear. They typically pop up on roads, in towns, that kind of thing. There are no bloodlines , no reproduction, no genetics. Nobody can figure it out." I stared at him, trying to wrap my mind around it. "That's just strange..." I finally managed to say. "Is it a god?" Azen chuckled. "Despite the strange happenings around us, the magic, the appearances, most demons are atheist." I frowned again. Demons were weird.

"So!" The lord said quickly, obviously changing the subject. "Would you two pawns like to hear your assignment?" Azen bowed low. "Of course, my Lord!" I felt a bit miffed from being called a pawn, but bowed anyways and nodded. "You need to find somebody for me." Azen frowned. "My specialty is-" He was quickly cut off by a glare. "Let me finish talking!" Azen bowed apologetically. "The person is in the human world, and very, VERY special."

Azen looked at him, confused. "May we have some details, my Lord? The kid laughed. "Of course! This person is not our enemy. His name is Krazen, and if you hurt or annoy him, you will suffer. He is a very special person. Humans know him as "The Prophet", "The Oracle", "The Soothsayer" and many other names. We know him as "The Seer", "The Traveller", or the one that I think is most accurate, "The Cursed One." Find him, talk to him, persuade him to visit. We need his help, if he will give it. You two may not know it, but the demon race is on the brink of annihilation."


	6. The Seer

I knelt by Seran and shook his shoulder. "Seran? What is it?" His eyes cleared, and he stood. "Nothing." I rolled my eyes as he stuffed the paper in his pocket. Yeah right. I left Seran alone, annoyed that he'd tell such an obvious lie. I knocked on Reyvis's door and heard footsteps. He opened the door, took one look at me, and then slammed it shut in my face. "Hey!" I yelled through the door. "Do you want your damned notebook or not?!" He grudgingly opened the door and I grinned, pulling him out and throwing him to the couch. He sat up quickly and stood up as Seran walked out, completely composed. "I'd recommend you sit, kiddo." We both sat, unsure of who he was talking to.

Reyvis looked at both of us, confused. "Where is Tev? My mentor?" Seran sighed, looking both sad and angry. "He was a traitor. We attacked, but he escaped. I will discuss your situation with the Lord." Reyvis smiled nervously. "H...hah, are you sure he is gone?" He looked around nervously, and Seran's eyes softened. "I'm sure. He can't hurt you anymore, you can tell me anything with no retribution." Reyvis fell silent, looking at his boots.

Reyvis shrugged. "I found out by accident. His room was forbidden, but he was gone, and I'm a curious person. I entered the room, obviously. It was strewn with papers and documents. I read some of them, and realized who he really was. I tried to get out, but he'd blocked the portal. When he came back, I attacked him, but I was incredibly outmatched. He made me tell him what I found, and then sent me to my room. He entered a few hours later and made me swear not to tell anybody anything, or he'd destroy... something. That was a few months ago, and ever since then he has been drinking heavily with a friend of his occasionally." Reyvis finished, eyes staying on his boots.

Seran looked at him, eyes filled with questions. "What would he have destroyed?" Reyvis shrank back, glaring. "None of your damned business!" Seran held up his hands placatingly, "Okay! I'm sorry for asking, kiddo. What did you find in his room?" Reyvis looked back down at his boots, seeming nervous from all of the questioning. "Quite a lot, sir. Many letters from somebody named 'Crewe', some dating back many, many years. The oldest I saw was from about eighty years ago, but there could've been older. This 'Crewe' Is a high ranking demon from the 2nd society, and Tev's old mentor."

Seran smiled at him. "Just stay here, please. I will alert the Lord, and you will be taken care of. Okay?" He walked out, leaving us alone. We were silent for almost ten minutes before I found the courage to talk. "I'm sorry for taking your notebook..." I handed it back to him as he looked up, startled. "Whatever." He smiled softly, contradicting his annoyed speech. "I'd better go, bye Reyvis!" I stuck my tongue out at him jokingly, opened a portal, and jumped through.

When I finally found Seran, he was sleeping in the back of the library on a half-empty shelf. Seran could be very strange. The paper was held loosely in his hand, tempting me. I gave in once again to my evil side and carefully eased it out of his hand, sitting in a chair a few shelves away with it. I carefully uncrumpled the paper, straightening it out. There was color on one side, writing on the other.

The writing said:

You found that idiot,Tev, just as expected. You've always been smart! I think you just need a reminder though, dear Seran. I will always be one step ahead of you. Always. See the other side? A picture! I stole the technology from him, just as I stole his sanity! He was very easy to break, although he also seems he would be easy to put back together! I will consider giving him back if you visit me! Just remember that there is always a price, just like I'm always one step ahead, dear Seran. I might not give him back if your offer isn't good enough. His screams are almost adorable! Please keep it down about me over there, you never know, a knife might just happen to slide down his throat!

-With best regards, Crewe

I stared at it for a minute. Crewe was insane! Horrible bastard! I turned it over and immediately felt sick. It was an incredibly detailed portrait of a Kerilin tied to a chair, limp, but his head was being held up from the hair by a gloved hand. He had dark hair and clear blue eyes, pupil framed by demon red. He would've been quite handsome if his face wasn't covered in cuts and bruises. His eyes were dead-looking, no emotion in them except pain. He was wearing a cloak, Seran's mark on the left shoulder. His had on demon's clothes, but they were ripped apart by what looked like knife blades and soaked with dried and some fresh blood. It was Seran's "dead" Kerilin. I shivered. Crewe was absolutely sick. Twisted, Twisted bastard.

No wonder Seran had freaked out! He had thought the Kerilin was dead, but he was actually captured, suffering and probably waiting for Seran to save him. I felt a twinge of guilt, even though I had nothing to do with it. I I glanced at the Kerilin one more time and stood up. I slid the paper back into Seran's hand and shook his shoulder gently. "Seran?" I whispered, not wanting to break the peaceful silence. "Wake up!" he opened his eyes suddenly. "I wasn't asleep, young apprentice. Advisors don't nap in the middle of the day!" I flushed red with embarrassment. "I'm sorry for taking the paper, I just-" he cut me off.

"Don't be sorry. I would've done the same!" I could tell that Seran was trying hard to be cheerful. He was smiling, but his eyes were shocked and sad. "Was... Was that your Kerilin?" I asked softly, unable to help myself. He flinched and nodded. "Yes, that's Rowan. I met him many, many years ago. " Seran smiled softly, eyes containing infinite sadness. "I was apprehensive of Kerilin at first. Humans? Being partnered with a lower species? I was so wrong. I don't regret anything, although he probably does, now. He was my best friend. We had hundreds of adventures through hundreds of years. I miss him."

Seran smiled a fake smile at me and jumped off the shelf, shoving the paper in his pocket. "I will be back soon, I'm going to go retrieve Rowan." "I'm coming!" I said, determined. He smiled down at me and ruffled my hair. "Nope. Too dangerous! I will be back soon!" He went to the portal and opened it, jumping into it with a wave. I waited a few moments, and then pressed my hand to the stone. I didn't care what he said, I was going with him! There was only one problem though; the portal wasn't opening. The bastard had blocked it! I kicked the stone and stalked to my room, furious and worried.

Six Hours Later

I had just started a new book when I heard the whoosh of a portal opening. I sprinted out and then stopped. Crewe. I backed ito the doorway and reached for my knife, but it wasn't there. I'd left it in the library! Crewe turned around and saw me. I gasped and backed up more as I realized that he was carrying Seran. "Hmm? Oh! The little apprentice makes an appearance!" He chuckled darkly and set Seran down softly. "So," He said, turning to face me. "I have a question! Where is Seran's room?" I stayed silent, refusing to answer the bastard. He sighed and took a step forward, eyes menacing.

He suddenly paused and grinned. He opened the portal and stepped through. I sprinted up and dragged Seran into a storage room, hoping he wouldn't look there. I ran to grab my knife just as a huge weight hit me in the back, knocking me off my feet. I hit the glass hard, winded. I flipped over a few seconds later, furious. My eyes widened as I saw who he was setting down. Rowan. I stood up and faced him. "What do you want?!" He grinned. "Show me Seran's room, and I will let you take Rowan here, although he's practically useless now, being insane!"

I smirked. "You're insane, does that make you useless?" His face transformed from a cold pleasantry to furious. "I'm not insane!" He yelled, eyes flashing with fury and anger. He swept his hand across and I saw a flash of light. A few seconds later the dust cleared, and I could see a huge rent in the wall.

Crewe smiled coldly. "Show me his room." I pointed shakily, hoping Seran would forgive me. I didn't see any other option, and at least Seran would get Rowan back. Crewe quickly disappeared into Seran's room, leaving me and the unconscious Rowan alone, but not for long. Seran walked out of the storage room looking sleepy and confused. "What..? He asked. I was about to reply when the idiot tripped over Rowan and knocked himself unconscious.

That moron! I groaned and smacked my head. Seran was the weirdest demon ever. There was no sign of Crewe, so I moved them both to a small storage room that Seran kept the healing equipment in. I set them both on soft infirmary-style beds and peeked outside. Crewe was just walking out, carrying a small bag. He winked at me and nodded. "See you around, kid! Thanks!" He stepped into the portal and disappeared, my angry yell never reaching his ears.

I went into the room to see Seran sitting up in bed, staring in shock at Rowan. "How?" he asked. I shrugged. "Crewe carried both of you here, went into your room and took something, and then left." He jumped to his feet, alarmed. "What did he take?!" I flinched. "J..just a small blue bag." Seran paled considerably and opened his mouth to speak, but a mumble from Rowan interrupted him. Seran winced and walked to his bed, looking unnerved. He brushed fingers across Rowan's forehead and frowned. "Fever." Seran walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a small bottle. He walked over to Rowan and trickled some of it's contents into the Kerilin's mouth. He pulled up a chair and sat by his bed, waiting for him to wake up.


	7. An Old Enemy

Two days later, we were still with the Seer. I wondered why Azen wasn't insisting we leave, but didn't ask him for the fear that he had just forgotten. "Seer?" Azen asked suddenly, looking up from a book. "Just how old are you? This book mentions you, and it's ten-thousand years old." The seer looked up for a moment, and then looked back down at his book. "I'm not sure, my memories blend together." I frowned. I didn't think he was telling the truth, but I hoped Azen wouldn't push him. Krazen frowned. "Shall we go to bed? It's getting late." We both nodded and walked to a room he'd lent us.

"Azen?" I asked while we were getting into our sleeping-rolls, "Who is Crewe?" I saw Azen jump slightly, looking at me in shock. "Where did you hear that name?" He snapped. I frowned. "I saw it in a few books at our base, and I heard the Seer mutter 'Crewe...will...close by...'. Who is he?" Azen sighed and glared at the wall, fear in his eyes. "Nobody. Go to sleep." I looked at him for a few moments, and then turned away. Azen could be a lying bastard sometimes.

The next morning was uneventful. We ate a quick breakfast before preparing to hunt. Azen had his twin knives, Krazen had his bow, and I had a dagger... and my 'Slenderman' form, of course. It'd been a while before I'd been able to use it, and I was eager to get outside and change into the faceless creature. It was hard to describe to Azen; the freedom, the unending happiness, all of my senses so powerful. I was exited.

We walked outside into the crisp, cold snow. It was a bright and sunny day, cool and fresh, and the light glinted off the snow and ice in beautiful ways. I glanced at Azen, and when he nodded, I changed forms.

As soon as I reached inside my conscious to 'pull out' my Slenderman form, I started feeling hot. My vision went dark, and the heat increased, soon being almost painful. I felt my limbs elongate, my face smooth out, my features disappear, and my tentacles grow out of my back and hide, barely poking out. The process felt like minutes, but when my vision came back to normal, Azen and the Seer had only taken four steps. I looked around, smiling. I didn't have eyes, but I could see well. My vision was clearer, sharper, and I could see more on either side of me, as well as above.

I took long strides over to the two staring people, and then bowed mockingly. Azen rolled his eyes and pushed me away, and Krazen just stared, apathetic. They were just a bundle of fun, weren't they? I walked into the woods, covering so much more ground with every step that the two people couldn't come close to my speed. If I could've grinned, I would have. It was funny to see Azen, who was usually a few inches taller than me, come up only about fifteen centimeters past my waist.

I was getting bored walking along the snowy path, unable to talk to the two chatting beings. After the sixth time knocking my head on a branch, I was done. I glanced around, coming up with an idea. I walked out a dozen meters or so into a less dense portion of the forest, and then shot a tentacle up and wrapped it around a branch. I wrapped a second tentacle around a branch a few meters away, and then lifted myself up tentatively.

It didn't hurt at all! My tentacles supported me with ease as I hung a meter off the ground. I wrapped a third tentacle around another branch, and let go with the other two. I swung easily, gripping another branch and keeping my momentum. This could be fun! I swung from branch to branch, acquiring more speed and precision as I went. Soon, I realized I was many leagues ahead. That was when I heard Azen scream.

I immediately dropped and started sprinting. I soon discovered the swinging was faster, however, and swung all the way back. Ten minutes was far too long to be gone.

The pure, untouched white snow was now churned up and dyed red with blood. Splatters of blood were everywhere, and mostly concentrated around a mangled figure on the ground. Azen! I sprinted over and touched two fingers to his slashed wrist. The pulse was very weak, but it was there. I quickly looked around, but there was no sign of the Seer. Had he done this?! Waited for me to leave, and then attacked Azen?!

I shook my head and concentrated on Azen. I needed to keep him alive! He was bleeding out quickly. I carried him as fast as I could to the cabin and laid him on a table before running to a storage room for healing supplies. I ran back and began hastily applying ointments and bandages, stuffing pills down his throat. I overreacted a little, forgetting that demon's healed quickly, and he woke up in the middle of me trying to shove a pill down his throat and panicked.

I immediately stopped and changed back to my normal form. "No!" He finally managed to say, eyes glazed over with fear. "Don't change back! He-" Azen's panicking was cut off by a knock on the door, and a smooth voice saying, "Hello?" I saw Azen pale considerably, and then pass out cold. I sighed, looking at the door apprehensively. I was about to change back when I saw a knife appear out of seemingly nowhere and rest on my throat, drawing a spot of blood.

I stiffened, turning slowly to face my captor. It was a child! He looked to be about ten years of age, and while he looked nervous, his eyes were determined. "If you change forms, both Azen and you will die." He said, his voice childish, but steady. I smiled sarcastically at him. "Alright, kid." He narrowed his eyes at me, and I felt the knife dig in a little more. A loud bang came from the front, and while my eyes jerked to the door, I flung myself backwards, simultaneously grabbing the knife and ripping it out of his small hand.

I twisted around and knocked the kid over with the hilt of the knife, and he fell unconscious as he hit the floor. I felt a bit of guilt worm it's way in. I just hurt a kid! He was trying to hurt me, but he was still a kid! I heard the door creak open, lock broken, and footsteps enter the room. I drew my dagger and faced the person.

I frowned at him. "Who are you?" I asked, wary and curious. The demon had dark red hair streaked with black and silver strands, long enough to cover his ears, but not long enough to get in the way during a fight. His eyes, blood red like a demon's, had a strange twist to them. Flecks of gold were sprinkled through his eyes, noticeable, even from a few meters away. He was tall and thin, and he wore strange clothes. He had on a silver shirt and trousers, a long black cloak covering up a lot of it. His boots were black with red spots. Blood. His cloak had a small yellow-white symbol on the upper shoulder, as well as a red number. Three.

"Who are you?" I repeated again. He grinned and bowed low, as mocking as I'd been earlier with Azen and the Seer. "Crewe, Crewe of the light!" I frowned. "Of the light? You seem pretty damn evil to me, all covered in blood in your black cloak!" He laughed harshly and stood, brushing his hair out of his face, which had a spatter of blood. Azen's blood. I shrank back as he stared into my eyes, shivering suddenly. He had the eyes of a madman. Such blatant insanity, hidden by a calm, 'courteous' demeanor. It scared me.

He laughed again, breaking the eye contact. "Would you like me to show you?" I saw a crazy smile and a flash of bright light, and then I cried out as a burning pain slashed through my chest, sending me to a kneeling position, holding my wound. As I looked back at the spreading blood, I noticed hazily that it was completely straight and clean-cut. As I flashed back to Azen's wounds, I realized that they had been exactly alike. He had hurt Azen that badly! What had he done with Krazen?

I looked up at the sound of more footsteps. The psycho was coming closer! I struggled to stand, to change forms, to do anything! Altogether too soon, I felt fingers close around my throat, and I was lifted up. "Light isn't as good as you humans think. It's much more powerful than the dark, I mean, It destroys darkness, doesn't it? Would you like more proof to light's ambiguousness?" I glared at him. "No." I managed to croak out, my windpipe being crushed.

He took the hint and dropped me, kicking me to the other side of the room. I watched him stalk over to Azen, eyes gleaming with triumph. No! I couldn't let him! I moved to get up, but movement at my side caught my eye, and as I saw the kid's knife hilt rushing towards my face, I heard Azen scream once more as a flash of light lit up the blood splattering the floor.


	8. Piece by Piece, the Puzzle Falls

The first thing I felt was the heat. The sun was beating down on my back, and I could feel dry, dead grass under me. I groaned and shifted, cracking my eyes open and squinting in the light. I was in a warm field, right by a small stone house. I frowned suddenly. What was wrong with this? It was the middle of winter! Where was the snow? The cold winds? I frowned again. And why couldn't I move? I tested my wrists again and realized that they were bound. Dammit. I lifted my head up and scanned the area, looking for signs of life. Where was Azen?

Finding nothing, I twisted back to look at the stone shelter. Large gray stones covered a wooden base with a thatched-straw roof. It was a nice home, but I wondered why Crewe had brought us here. Crewe! I twisted around again, nervous. Where was that bastard?! Where was Azen?! I struggled to undo the ropes binding my hands and ankles, but it was useless. I smacked my head into the ground and groaned, waiting for something to happen.

I must've fallen asleep at some point, because when I awoke, I was no longer in the dry, grassy field. I was in a small room with a dirt floor, walls, and roof; the only exit being a steep tunnel upwards. I stood up and stretched, noticing gratefully that my hands were now free. I walked over to the tunnel and looked up. The top was covered by a locked metal grate. I was imprisoned. I heard shuffling behind me and immediately whipped around, feeling for a nonexistent knife at my waist. It was Azen!

I smiled hesitantly at him. "Are you okay?" I asked. He nodded once, smiling faintly before sinking to his knees. I froze. "Azen?!" I knelt beside him and touched his shoulder. "Are you okay?" He nodded again, looking around as if paranoid. "What's wrong?" I asked quietly. "Nothing." he said shortly, standing up again and shaking his head as if to rid himself of thoughts. "I'd like for you to meet someone." He said, suddenly smiling again. I smiled back and followed him, examining the room in more detail.

There were two roughly dug rectangles in the wall, marking entrances to other rooms in the prison. The walls, roof, and floor were all made of hard-packed dirt with chunks of stone sticking out here and there. I noticed a spigot in the corner along with some carved wooden cups. Fancy. I followed Azen through one of the doorways into a different room, identical except for the single wooden pole in the center, carved with runes that practically radiated power.

Peering around Azen, I realized with a gasp that somebody was tied to the pole! He was slumped over, sitting with his legs crossed and his hands tied behind his back around the pole. His eyes were closed, but I assumed they were the blood-red of a demon. His hair was dirty and tangled, but obviously white, long enough to just pass his ears. A torn black cloak wrapped around his sickly-thin body, and he wore white clothes under his cloak- clothes that may have once been purely white, but were now torn and almost seemed to be dyed with spilled blood.

"Who is this?" I asked Azen. I had an idea, but I sorely hoped I was wrong. "This..." Azen said softly, eyes filling with silent tears, "Is my former mentor, Seran." I stared at him in horror. That was one time I would've enjoyed being wrong. "Is he okay?" I asked, copying his quiet tone. He shook his head. "He hasn't woken up, and I've been down here two or three days. Crewe threw you down here about six hours ago." I frowned. "I think he forgot about me. I was laying in a field when I woke up, and I eventually was so bored that I fell back asleep, waking up here."

Azen cracked a grin. "Aww, forgotten?" He laughed faintly, and Seran stirred, opening his eyes. Well, one of his eyes. "Azenvel?" He whispered, causing Azen to jerk around, eyes wide. "Seran!" He cried, hugging him hard and tearing up again. Seran winced, smiling faintly. Azen let go immediately, a look of guilt crossing his face. "I'm sor-" he was cut off by Seran's voice. "It's fine, kiddo." Azen frowned. "I'm not a kid!" I couldn't help but snicker, Azen was acting so childish! "Who is this?" Seran asked, turning his blood-red eye slowly to me. "It's my partner, Aris!" Azen said, seeming a bit proud. Seran's eye widened slightly in surprise when he heard my name, but he quickly regained control.

Azen frowned, noticing Seran's closed eye. "Are you hurt?" He asked worriedly. Seran flinched, closing his good eye. "It's fine." He said tersely. He opened it again, and he was back to his happy, if pained, self. Seran began examining Azen with his open eye. "So, Crewe has captured you. Has he hurt you?" Azen frowned. "Yes. It's fine though, just a few slashes. It was nothing bad, sir." Seran smirked at Azen. "Now, now. What do we call me?" Azen laughed. "Sorry, Seran." I smiled. After seeing Azen cry over Seran's "death" before, I was glad to see him back.

"Seran. Open your eye." Azen said, suddenly serious. Seran stiffened, opened his mouth to argue, and then opened his other eye. The Iris was a dark gray, The pupil only a few shades darker. Azen's eyes widened. "You... He... Rowan..." I frowned. Rowan? How ironic...

Seran eyes both closed, and it looked like he was fending off tears. He opened them a few minutes later, filled with forced cheerfulness. "Yes. He changed me. I will soon lose all ties with Rowan, and be able to use the damned other power." I gave a confused sigh. "What are you two talking about?" They both looked at me, startled, as if they'd forgotten I was there. Figures.

Seran smiled. "Aris, was it?" I nodded, and he looked at me seriously. "Let me explain, then. Demons are not all together; like humans, they have split apart, but only into two main groups. There is the group we are apart of, 'The Alactras', and the other group, 'The Veran'. These two groups are comprised of demons, but while we keep the red eyes were were found with, and the ability to have a partner, The Veren use a forbidden...method... to be able to control light or darkness, at the cost of their red eyes and the ability to have a partner. It is forbidden among the Alactras to have this power, so I suppose that makes me a traitor now."

Azen scowled, eyes menacing. "Did he do this to you?" He said quietly. "Did he destroy your ties to the Alactras and Rowan?" Seran frowned. "Yes, but don't go after Crewe. He is much too powerful for you." Azen smiled darkly. "Not for Aris. He is powerful." Azen flashed a smile at me, and I grinned, changing into my 'Slenderman' form. I felt heat radiate through my body, my limbs elongating, my face smoothing, and the tentacles grow out of my back and hide, waiting for my command to shoot out.

Seran's eyes widened as he saw me transform. "incredible..." he breathed, looking in wonder. I shot out a few tentacles, snapping the pole that Seran was tied to. I gently used another two, thin, tentacles to break the ropes binding Seran's hands. He smiled at me. "Thank you!" he rubbed his wrists, wincing. I quickly changed back into my normal form, uncomfortable with having to duck because of the low ceiling. I felt a shooting, brief pain as my face appeared, my limbs compressed, and my tentacles disappeared.

I smiled as I saw Azen helping a wincing Seran up. It seemed that he hadn't stood in a while, because he was having trouble. "We need to visit Rowan." Seran said softly, speaking to Azen, but looking at me. Azen glanced at him, puzzled, but nodded obediently. "Alright! Where is he?" Seran frowned. "One of the rooms, I... I'm not sure." Azen nodded, hugging Seran comfortingly, making me smile. Since when was he so sweet and childish?

We walked to a few rooms, stopping once to free a young unknown demon with soft light-blue hair and a grateful smile. Seran eventually stopped in front of a doorway, "Rowan!" He exclaimed, walking quickly in, and paling immediately. I stared in shock at the Kerilin in front of me. He had dark green eyes, medium-length brown hair with a few blonde streaks, and an expression of shock. I stepped closer to him, hardly believing it. It was Rowan. Rowan Akers, my father.


	9. Trust

He was tied to a pole in the same fashion as Seran had been. He wasn't as bloodstained, but his forest-green eyes were losing the red ring around the iris rim. Seran glanced at me, looked at Rowan, and then stepped aside, pulling a confused Azen with him. "What? Why are-" Seran cut him off, whispering illegible words in his ear. Azen's eyes widened, and he fell silent. "Dammit!" Da exclaimed, fury suddenly flashing in his eyes. I flinched and backed up. "Sorry. I'll leave now." I muttered, tears blurring my eyes as I ran off, ducking into a side room.

I sat there for several minutes, and despite my best efforts, tears were flowing. I had thought he was dead, burned to ashes in a barn fire, but he was alive, and a damned Kerilin at that! He had left brother to die at the home, alone and half-blind, and the moment he saw me, he had swore and been angry. I didn't understand! Da was such a kind person, always helping my twin and I through difficult times, pushing us on sleds down hills, teaching us to cook, reading us stories...

A sudden thought struck me. I'd often wondered why he raised us in a huge forest, so far from others, but it all made sense now. I had never thought about it, but Da was much too young looking to have such old kids. He looked to be twenty-five, and I was seventeen! That would have raised questions, along with the fact he wouldn't aging. A flood of memories took me, things that I hadn't realized were strange until I thought about it. How had I never noticed?! I realized that was another reason for him to keep us away; he could raise us exactly how he wanted.

I grimaced, "Why...?" I whispered. "Why bother to have kids?" He had always seemed to love us, but maybe it was a one-night-stand gone wrong, and his honor made him stay with Mom? I frowned. That would explain the fact that, while he was never cruel to her, he never really seemed to... love...her. They had seemed like friends, not lovers. I had never realized any of this was strange until brother and I had started traveling, but even then, I had tried to avoid thinking about it, not wanting to drudge up painful memories.

Da had always been the bright spot of light in our lives as a kid. He never turned aside our questions as stupid, but instead answered them kindly. He never raised his voice, at least until Avis nearly died, losing an eye. Only then had he yelled. He always read us bedtime stories, sometimes making them up in his head... or so I thought. The fantastical tales weren't fiction, as I now realized; they had been his adventures with Seran. I took another shuddering sob, wondering why he'd changed so much. Why?!

I was still crying when I heard the door open softly, and somebody limp in. "Hey Aris." I heard Da say, sitting by me against the wall and ruffling my hair. "What do you want?" I asked, my voice muffled by tears and knees, as I had curled into a ball, sitting up. He sighed, voice sad. "I'm sorry Aris, I didn't mean to be like that. I was just... scared." I frowned, wiping away tears and looking up. "Scared?" I asked, incredulous. He was frowning, his own eyes seeming nearly teary. "Yes, kiddo. Scared. I never expected you to become a Kerilin, and frankly, it made me scared and angry, especially considering where we are!"

I frowned, "Yeah?" I said harshly. "If you're so worried about our well being, why did you pretend to die, leaving my half-blind little brother alone?!" He flinched, his eyes becoming panicked. "I didn't have a choice, and speaking of Avis, where is he?!" I glared at him. "You ask that now?!" He frowned sadly, wincing at my anger. "My priority was you. Even if you had told me he was in danger, what could I do about it? We're helpless in here."

I looked down at the dirt floor. He was right, so right. Why was I so angry at him? He had been an amazing father, and it wasn't his fault what'd happened. I was just loosing my frustrations at him, which was very unfair to my hurting father. I scooted over a few inches and hugged him tightly. "I missed you, Da..." I whispered, feeling tears spring into my eyes again. He hugged back, ruffling my hair again. "Damn!" he muttered, this time not out of anger. "You've grown!"

I rolled my eyes at the cliché comment, smiling again. "Avis is safe, Da. He isn't a Kerilin, he is with the Ents." Rowan started, surprised. "W..What?!" He stammered. "Ents?!" I smirked. "Yes, Ents. He fell in with the last colony of true Ents, and they made him into an Ent-Friend. He explained it to me. Like us, he doesn't age. He now has the ability to talk to plants, or make them grow with a few words or a song. He is among the forests he loves!"

Rowan gaped at me, in awe. "An Ent-Friend?! You realize he is the first in nearly a millenium?! Ents are extremely picky and slow to make decisions!" I grinned, "My little brother is special!" He rolled his eyes, snorting. "You two are twins, and if you can't remember, he was born first!" I stuck my tongue out at him childishly. "I'm bigger! He's little! My little brother!" He smirked. "Keep thinking that, kiddo. Keep thinking that." I frowned, turning away.

He set a hand on my shoulder, pulling me closer. "Hey! So, how did you meet Azen?" I giggled, remembering my first reaction to him, and how much I'd changed. "I was allowed to go home for my birthday, and Avis told me you and mom had died in a fire. We decided to leave, and we walked for months, passing through various towns until we were attacked by bandits in our sleep. They took Avis, leaving me behind. I met Azen a few hours later, and he scared the hell outta me!"

Rowan smirked. "I'd bet!" I ignored him, continuing, "Imagine seeing someone walk into a clearing in the middle night, and then realize they have red eyes and sharp teeth! I passed out!" Rowan snickered, and I once again ignored him. "Stuff happened, we talked, became friends, I refused his Kerilin offer, he sent me on a hunt for a bridge, I found it, I was attacked by some moron named Reyvis, we went to his home, we made the bond, now many months later, here we are!"

He looked at me strangely, probably confused, but I had no intention of repeating myself. "Wha-" He began, cut off by Seran poking his head through the door. "Sorry to interrupt a family reunion, but we need to escape!" I stood quickly, following Rowan through the door, and walking towards Azen, who looked sympathetic. "I'm sorry," he murmured to me. "I had no idea..." I smiled at him. "It's fine! It makes a lot of sense now that I think about it. It was a real obvious thing If I had just thought about it for a few moments!" He smirked. "Glad you feel that way?" I saw him glance at Rowan and Seran, and paused.

I had apparently been correct about Rowan and Mom, because Seran and Rowan seemed to be very... friendly. I turned away, coughing awkwardly, and Rowan pulled out of the hug with a blush. How creepy, seeing your Da in a relationship. With a demon. Azen and I walked away, towards the exit. "The problem," He said loudly so that Rowan and Seran could hear, "Is that he obviously wants us to get out. He didn't tie Aris or I up, he simply let us rescue you two. He knows of Aris's strength, and knows we will use it to get out."

Rowan looked at me, frowning. "Oh yes! You're a Kerilin. What's your form?" I shrugged noncommittally, "Slenderman." Azen frowned at me. "What?" I looked at him, puzzled for a moment. "Oh yes! I meant _Seriarores_, Slender-Being." Rowan's eyebrows shot up. "Wow! How very unique! It's nearly as rare as mine!" I smirked. "Well, I do have your blood in me, after all!" I froze. "Wait, Da?" He looked at me questioningly. "Yes?"

I sighed. "I was conceived from you and a human mother, yes?" His face grew several shades darker. "Yes. Why?" I rolled my eyes. "You weren't really human anymore, you were a Kerilin. Does that make me...like...half-Kerilin at birth?" He smiled warmly, a loving look in his eyes. "Yes, you two were very special little guys." I rolled my eyes. "Yeah?" I ignored his answer, concentrating on changing into my 'Slenderman' form.

I felt my body grow hot, as if I was thrown into a fire. I felt my limbs stretch out, elongating and growing powerful and thin. My face smoothed out, my skin rapidly becoming as white as a cloud on a fine summer day. Tentacles grew out of my back, hiding, waiting to be extended and used. The entire process only took two-to-three seconds, but it felt more like two-to-three minutes. I ended up bending over unceremoniously, annoyed at the ceiling. I walked, hunched over, to the steep exit tunnel, easily fitting through with my thin, tall body.

Examining the top grate, I shot out a few thin tentacles, wrapping around it and pulling. After a few moments of straining, and a groan from the pressured metal, it pulled through. I threw the grate down, whacking Rowan on the shoulder in the process. If I had a mouth, which I didn't, I'd have laughed. I climbed out first, using tentacles to reach in and grab my slightly-terrified-and-pissed friends, who I soon released quickly.

I was unable to talk, so I pointed to myself and cocked my head, wondering if I should change forms. Azen looked confused, and then Seran muttered something to him, and he smiled at me. I suddenly heard Azen's voice in my head, explaining how to talk mentally. /"Just open the connection, and then think normally! Opening the connection isn't necessary if I open it first, though."/ He spoke... er... thought, strangely, as if unused to mental speak. /"Should I stay in my form?"/ I asked. He frowned, turning to Seran instinctively.

Seran smiled. "You're an adviser now, you make the decision!" Azen scoffed. "Hell no! Crewe is your enemy! This is your jurisdiction!" Seran winced, "Fine." He turned to me. "Please stay in your form, Aris. I don't know if you can beat him, because of his light powers, but it's worth a try!" I nodded, and began following Seran into Crewe's home; a medium-sized building formed of gray-black stone with a slab roof. It was completely empty.

We heard a noise above us, and I heard Azen gasp as we looked up to see Crewe sitting on the rafters above. "Just like when I first met him." I heard Azen mutter, obviously nervous. Crewe laughed harshly, jumping down. "Hello! Nice of you to make it!" He clapped twice, and demons started flooding in through the door. We were trapped.

I immediately whipped my tentacles over to the intruders, striking many down, but there was always another to take their place. Slashes of light were everywhere, and one ripped across my blank face. I expected blood, but none came. I was bloodless. We were fighting our best, but Rowan was already down, with Seran protecting him. There were just too many. I had almost given up hope when a dozen of the Alactras, with their partners, sprinted in, joining the fight with vicious smiles.

Among the group, I saw two people I recognized. The first was that bastard, Reyvis. The second was the Demon Lord himself, Tyren. He was surrounded by four guards, and fighting incredibly, a calm smirk plastered on his face. He waved to me in the middle of stabbing a dark-eyed Veren, and then spun back into the whirlwind of a fight. It was strange to think, but watching demons fight was incredible. It was almost like a dance. A bloody dance.

I struck another few demons with my tentacles, spearing them and knocking them to the ground, spitting up blood. A few minutes later, there were only a few people standing on both sides, glaring warily at each other. Seran, Azen, myself, and The Lord on one side; Crewe, his apprentice, and a huge black-eyed man on the other side. /"Who is the really tall guy?"/ I asked Azen. /"I don't know!"/ He replied, seeming puzzled.

"Hello!" The young Lord said, stepping up and offering his hand, much to the dismay of the guards. The two-and-a-half meter demon's mouth twitched as he looked down at the young Lord, and he shook his hand. "It's nice to finally meet you, Tyren of the Alactras." Tyren nodded. "Likewise, Kaern of the Veren." Azen's eyes widened. /"I recognize the name! He's... He's the leader of the Veren. His policies are of moderate peace, but he obviously lied, because Crewe attacked us!"/

I examined the huge demon carefully. He was easily the tallest demon I'd ever seen, He was almost as tall as me! He was nearly as thin as me too, and he had a sickly appearance, his thin face seeming hollow. He had long dark hair, going down almost to his back in a nearly shaggy fashion. His eyes matched his hair perfectly, the iris as black as a moonless night. His voice was strong and smooth, seeming almost the opposite of what I'd expected. "I apologize for the actions of Crewe," He said softly, staring at Tyren. "He was given orders to leave the Alactras alone, and I just realized of the kidnapping and torture. He will be punished, I promise you."

Crewe sneered. "I already told you, Kae! It wasn't against the Alactras, it was personal!" The tall demon narrowed his eyes, deep in thought. "Do you see my dilemma, young Lord? I don't want to be a leader who takes away freedoms, but I don't want him to attack such high-ups in your society. Tyren smiled amiably. "Everybody he attacked was a member of my highest group, the Advisers. They are similar to your council. I might overlook some people's capture, but my inner circle being tortured isn't exactly what I appreciate."

Kaern smiled. "Blunt, aren't you? I like people like you. I'm sorry to say, but I'm glad that the old leader is gone, he wasn't very understanding of the Veren. Will you be more understanding and intelligent?" Tyren smirked. "Of course! The last Lord was a bit of a drag, I agree! How about we meet for a drink and negotiations later?" The tall, unnerving demon smiled. "That sounds good, but only if you promise not to poison the beverage, like your predecessor!" Tyren laughed. "I have honor and pride, don't worry!" Kaern reached out a hand to ruffle Tyren's hair, but caught himself and brought up the hand to brush his long hair out of his face.

A huge flash of pain suddenly went through me, knocking me to my knees as my form forcibly changed back to normal. "W..What?" I whispered, aware of everybody staring at me. "You must've been in the form too long, you can't take it for too much time, or it changes back for you." Rowan said briskly, pulling me up. I noticed the Dark-eyed lord looking at me, interested. "Oh! One of your kind, hmm? How interesting!" Tyren smiled. "That's Azenvel Renwis's Kerilin, Aris. Azen picked him up a while ago, before he became my third Adviser."

Karen examined us, his eyes too dark to tell the emotion hidden in them. "I was found by the Veren, so I've never really seen a Kerilin up close." He thought for a minute. "Ah! How about a test of trust?" Tyren frowned. "What do you propose?" The dark-eyed demon gave a warm smile. "I'm curious about this pair here," He motioned to Azen and I, "What if you let them stay, as honored guests, with me for a week? I will send a council member to stay with you for a week, ordered to answer most of your questions. Of course, if we do anything to your advisers, or if you do anything to my council member, we will know who to trust, yes?"

Tyren opened his mouth angrily, obviously pissed, but was stopped by one of his guards whispering in his ear. He sighed, the anger dissipating. "I agree, but only if I receive permission from the pair in question!" Kaern smiled amiably. "Of course! I wouldn't have it any other way!" Rowan stood, eyes blazing. "My permission too!" He started to stalk forward, but was held back by Seran, who murmured in his ear;. "He isn't a little boy anymore, Rowan... He makes his own decisions." Rowan slumped, the fire gone, and he leaned against Seran with closed eyes.

Tyren walked over to us. "What do you say?" He asked, his eyes glancing over us. Azen scowled. "Being the test subject? I don't like it, but I'll do it." He looked at me. "Aris?" I frowned. "I don't mind, under one condition. He keeps that psychopath, Crewe, away from us!" Azen grinned. "I wholeheartedly agree with that statement!" Tyren stepped back over to the tall demon, his eyes below chest height. "They accept, as long as you keep Crewe away."

Kaern nodded, smiling. "It's settled, then!" Tyren grabbed his shirt, pulling him down. "Listen to me." He hissed quietly, barely loud enough for me, who was standing right next to him, to hear. "You hurt one hair on either of their heads, and you will be responsible for the rain of blood that follows. Understood?" Kaern's eyes were wide with shock, and he quickly shook it off, a grin appearing on his face again. "Of course, Tyren! I wouldn't imagine it, especially with one like you to protect them!" Tyren nodded, releasing his shirt and smiling. He waved to us one last time. "Bye! Have fun!" Tyren, the child Lord of the Demons, walked out, smirking.


	10. Spilled Blood

Hey guys! Just to let you know, there will be no chapter releases this weekend, as I will be out of town. When I return, the first thing I will do is rewrite the first two or so chapters, as I'm far from pleased with them. If you have any ideas or questions, feel free to say something, I appreciate help from my readers! Enjoy your weekend!

-Kasimyr

I scowled at the tall demon, nervous. He has said Crewe acted against his orders, but was it true? Kaern looked over, making me shiver as his eyes scanned me. I glanced at Azen, who pushed me lightly, and we walked with the demon outside. "Crewe!" He said sharply, "You are confined to your former room in the main base. Do you understand?" Crewe smiled, bowing low. "Of course, Lord Kaern!" I glanced at Azen. /"Lord? So he's Tyren's equivalent?"/ Azen scowled, looking at the Veren lord. /"Yes. Treat him with respect, but not outright friendliness." I nodded, /"Alright./

The Dark-eyed Lord stepped forward, slashing his hand through the air and slicing it open like butter. A large portal appeared, but unlike the ones I'd seen before, this one was as dark as Crewe's soul. If he had one. Do demons have souls? /"Azen?"/ I asked, /"Do Demons have souls?"/ Azen paused, looking at me strangely. /"Of course! We are alive, too! They just aren't edible like a human's soul."/ I nodded, wondering what the difference between souls was.

The tall demon motioned for Crewe to walk into the portal, and he stepped in, stalking through. To my surprise, he didn't disappear the moment he went through. He walked deeper and deeper into the portal, seeming to shrink. his snowy hair blew wildly, as if in a wind, and he stopped a few meters in, somehow opening a rectangle of light, which he stepped through, finally vanishing.

Azen stared at the portal, his face a mask of wonder, confusion, and curiosity. "What...?" He asked softly. "How the hell...? What is it?" The Dark-eyed Lord smiled delightedly. "I love curious people! It's a special form of portal, unique to Veren with the 'Darkness' ability." I suddenly saw Azen's eyes fill with tears. "Or Alactras with the darkness ability." The Lord frowned. "What?" Azen steadied himself. "Crewe changed my former mentor, Seran."

Kaern's eyes widened with shock, and then sank into a deep, terrifying fury. "Crewe. I'd get rid of him if the council would just stop protecting the Psychopath. Don't worry Azen, I will send the cure to Tyren, and tell him to give it to Seran before it's too late." Azen smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Lord!" Kaern laughed slightly, "Kaern is fine! No need for formalities when we're alone!" He smiled, lightly gripping our shoulders and leading us through the darkness. The moment we stepped in, the entrance disappeared, leaving us trapped in a windy darkness. The wind was powerful and strong, nearly knocking me off my feet multiple times, but Kaern's grip kept me standing.

We walked about five meters, eventually coming to a stop in front of a single silver sphere. The tall Lord gripped it, twisting it. I realized it was a doorknob as a rectangle of light swung open, and we all tumbled through, appearing in a small meadow of deep green grass and colorful flowers. "Where are we?" I asked, scanning the forest in front of me. It was thick and dense, at the foot of huge mountains. "Turn the hell around!" Azen said, sounding exasperated. "Eh?" I turned around, and gasped.

There was a huge castle in front of us, and unlike the dark, black and red one in the demon realm, this one was beautiful. It was made of stones, several shades of gray. It had a huge wall surrounding it made of the same material, and through the small wrought-iron gate, I could see a moat filled with clear water. It had four main towers on each corner, and a large main keep. The wall seemed to extend far behind the end of the castle, so I assumed there was a garden, or maybe a few barracks! "It's amazing!" I whispered, enchanted by the storybook castle.

The tall Lord looked at me, amused. "You like it? Most demons, when they first arrive, think it's boring and human-like. Trust me, the inside is much better!" We walked through the gate and over the moat, into the main keep of the castle. The first step inside was incredible. It was cool and fresh inside, the windows open and letting bright light in. The floor was covered by a thick red and blue carpet in most places, but some areas of dull gray stone poked out, giving it a feel of friendly imperfection, not too formal.

The main hall was about fifteen meters long, 12 meters tall, and five meters wide. Colored glass panes covered the ceiling in strategic places, letting in large amounts of beautiful light in patterns on the wall and floors. Statues, paintings, hung weapons, suits of armor, tables covered in a variety of objects, and various other objects lined the walls, giving it an adventurous feel. I saw at least four stairways and twenty doorways on the way down the hall, and I wondered how big the castle really was, and how many people lived in it!

When we reached the large, dark wooden doors at the end, Kaern flung them open, and the throne room was revealed. Most of the gray-stone walls were covered in tapestries and paintings, and it had a large, informal, plush chair where the throne was supposed to be, stacks of boots teetering dangerously at the side along with crumpled up parchment and empty bottles of ink. The stairs leading up to the 'throne' were lined with worn black carpet, masking the slabs of carved white marble underneath.

"I'm just here to get a map for you two, and then we can show you to your room! I had a double-bedded room set up for you, assuming you wouldn't feel comfortable separated. Is this fine?" We both nodded, and he walked to a stack of papers on a table behind the throne, digging through them before acquiring two maps, yellowed with age. "This castle is large, but the majority is actually underground, with another portion outside in the yard. You're free to go wherever you please, as long as you wear these!"

He handed both of us a small pin and silver key, each pin having an identical swirling gold, silver, and green design, a small lapis lazuli stone in the middle. We bowed, "Thank you, Lord Kaern!" He smiled. "Due to your importance, you have rooms on the top floor. You're free to do whatever you please, as long as it isn't damaging, or dangerous for yourself or anybody else. I suspect you won't be a problem, with a smart partnership like yours!" He lead us up red-carpeted stairs to an open area with three doors. He pointed to the door farthest back. "There you go! A nice view of the gardens, as well!"

He walked off, leaving us to examine our quarters. We used Azen's silver key to open the door, and I stuck mine in my pocket. The door swung open easily; the hinge recently oiled, and took hesitant steps in. The walls were gray stone and huge window was cut into the back, easily a meter wide and two meters long. It showed a beautiful view of gardens filled with flowers and trees, a few fountains spurting water, and a small pond filled with playing children. I noticed Azen looking at them in awe. "What?" I asked. "They're so... free." He said, voice soft.

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused. "Our children are upheld to strict rules most of the time. These little guys are just... playing!" I smiled sadly at him. "That's what you're supposed to do as a kid, Azen! That's what I did for so many years, in between schooling sections with D- Rowan." Azen made a face. "What?" I asked. "It's so weird!" he replied. "Rowan, my mentor's partner, being your father!" I smirked. "Yeah, talk about ironic! We're kinda like brothers!" Azen's face became solemn. "You're right, it is ironic. It's like fate is fucking with us."

I frowned. "Ever the pessimist, are you?" He grinned and turned away from the window, examining the room. The carpet was a dark green, and the walls were covered in paintings and one tapestry. The beds were huge and soft, dark brown bases with pure while sheets and downy pillows. A blanket was folded at the ends of both beds, woven with a richly-colored design; the emblem of the Veren. There were a few tables, mostly empty, with drawers filled with basic necessities like a comb, a few souls, blankets, and weapon-cleaning supplies. It was a beautiful well-stocked room.

"So, do you want to go out and explore?" Azen asked, looking curiously at me. "Of course!" I grinned, following him out. We walked down the stairwell, and into the bright main hall. "Should we go down?" I asked. "Obviously!" He replied with a smirk. We walked down a surprisingly dry, bright stairwell, but instead of carpet, there was just bare stone. Instead of stopping at any of the landings, we went down as far as possible. We had just reached the bottom stair when we heard footsteps behind us.

A quick look backwards, and we realized it was Crewe, out of his room! I glanced at Azen, we nodded once at each other, and we ducked behind a huge stack of barrels, watching through cracks in the dark aged wood. Crewe came into sight a few moments later. He glanced around, seemingly to see if he was alone, and then walked towards the barrels, grinning. He stopped two barrels in front of me, an insane grin on his lips, and popped open the lid of the barrel, taking out a bound and gagged person. It was The Seer!"

He carried the restrained Seer to the door, opening it and leaving it. We glanced at each other, and then moved quickly, peeking in through the door. He wasn't looking! Azen and I ducked in, hiding behind a large stack of wooden boxes. Glancing through the cracks, we watched a scene unfold, something we never were supposed to see.

Crewe worked quickly, chaining the Seer's arms to rings on the ceiling above, dangling his feet above the ground. I winced, knowing that it was painful. The Seer did nothing, just stared calmly at Crewe, who finished chaining him and ungagging him. Crewe smirked cruelly. "For somebody who can predict the future, you're very easy to capture!" The Seer stared at him, expressionless. "I don't predict the future, I simply see it and accept it without judgement. I saw my capture in the future, and couldn't prevent it. The end result would've been the same."

Crewe laughed. "I don't understand you, Cursed One. You don't even try?" The Seer shook his head, silently. "I already know the answer, but I also know you like to talk, so talk away. What do you want?" Crewe smirked. "Information." The seer looked at him, bored. "I already gave you information last time." Crewe scowled, eyes seeming to darken. "That was fake!" He spat, "I'm going to make sure you will never lie to me again!" He slashed his hand across, and a huge slice opened up in the Seer's chest. He winced, but looked unsurprised.

"Your violence is pointless, Crewe." he murmured. "It will come to be." Crewe scowled, eyes flashing. "I want answers!" he said, using his light to slash open the Seer's arm."Tell me the truth about the death!" The Seer smiled suddenly, enraging Crewe. "I said answers, not smiles!" The seer laughed. "Pointless violence. Alright Crewe, the truth? I repeat myself; You will die. Not soon, Not for a while, but when you die, it will be painful. You will regret everything."

Crewe snarled angrily, opening up another half-dozen cuts. "You're lying!" He said viciously. "No." The Seer said, an insane light appearing in his eye. I smiled, The Seer was about to have a fit of insanity. "Your life is pointless." I heard him whisper to Crewe. "Everything you do is worthless, pointless, not even a speck of a speck of time and space. Every breath you take? Insignificant! Every drop of blood you spill? Unnoticeable! Your death is speeding towards you at the speed of time, and what can you do to prevent it? Nothing! I see everything, I know every action you've taken, and everything you will do. I never lie, but you lie to yourself, you worthless demon!"

Crewe looked at him for a moment, shocked. "W..Wh..." I heard him stutter. His fear-filled eyes turned to rage, and he quickly pulled out of knife, slashing him relentlessly. I stared in shock at the blood splattering the walls and pooling on the floor. Crewe was insane! The Seer was worse. He was being tortured, but he turned the tables and mentally tortured Crewe. He was incredible, and frightening. Crewe began beating him violently, and Azen could watch no more.

He jumped up and tackled Crewe, I not far behind. He wrestled with Crewe, who was obviously too strong for him until I joined the fight in my slender-form. I wrapped my tendrils of shadow around his arms and legs, bashing his thrashing form against the stone floor until he grew still, his blood seeping onto the floor. I changed back quickly, kneeling by Crewe. "Alive." I reported. I chained him up, and then walked back over to Azen, who was crouched at the Seer's unconscious side.


	11. Wooden Barrier

"Is he alright?" I asked, bending down to examine the seer. Azen rolled his eyes. "Yeah," he replied sarcastically, "He's just fine, except for the hundred cuts and bruises!" I grinned sheepishly, undoing the chains binding his ankles. The Seer's eyes fluttered open, and focused on me. "Oh! We meet again! How are you?" I stared at him. "Yeah. Don't act so surprised! You knew!" The Seer smiled. "I at least try, sometimes!" Azen covered my mouth with his hand, cutting off my reply. "This isn't the time, you two. Seer, do they know you're here? Anyone but Crewe?" Krazen shook his head, his dark gradiented eyes half-closed.

Azen sat for a moment, thinking. "Alright, we need to sneak you out, Seer." He turned to me. "Can I see your map, Aris?" I unfolded my map, examining it. "Nope, you have your own!" He rolled his eyes. "Damn you. Fine, look for a tunnel out, will you? I don't fancy carrying him up so many stairs, in full view of anyone who passes by." I nodded absentmindedly, running my eyes over the aged map. "There is one a couple of passages to the right, but it's considered 'dangerous' and people aren't allowed there." Azen split into a grin. "Perfect! We'll hide him there until he heals!"

I stared at him. "It's considered dangerous for a reason! What if he's hurt even worse?" Azen snorted. "He'll know if something's about to collapse!" He looked at Krazen. "Right?" But there was no answer from the now-unconscious Seer. I swallowed nervously, feeling a pulse. I suddenly recalled a conversation I'd had with the Seer a few days ago. Was it really only a few days ago? It seemed like so much longer! The Seer had talked about himself for once, telling me some incredible things while Azen had slept.

"He should heal quickly, why isn't he?" I muttered. Azen looked over, confused. "What?" I sighed, and began telling him what Krazen had told me. "He technically lives at all times in the past and future at once. His cells are constantly dying and multiplying quickly, so when a cut is made, it's healed almost instantly. Why isn't it doing that?" Azen looked at me, still confused. "I don't know!" I sighed, not feeling up to explaining in more detail. "Later, Azen. Let's go take him to the place you suggested!" He smiled, happy that I agreed with him, and picked Krazen up.

We walked around a few dark, stone passages, weaving this way and that through the confines of the mountain. When we at last found crumbling stones and a wooden barrier, we knew it was an excellent place to hide the Seer. Azen ran back up for blankets and medicine, while I stayed with the unresponsive, bloodied Krazen.

Hey guys! In know this chapter was short, sorry! I promise that in a few hours, a bonus chapter will be out, in Crewe's point of view! I will do a few of those, and then go back to the normal storyline. I just felt that it'd be a nice change! Enjoy!

-Kasimyr (and SheNinja)


	12. Hidden Away (Crewe)

Hey guys! I finally found the courage, (and situation) to write a Crewe chapter! It gets pretty dark up ahead to let you know, and if torture bothers you, you might want to just scan it for important pieces. Unlike my other 'bonus' chapter, this one is very relevant to the storyline. The next one will probably also be a Crewe POV, and then we will get back to Aris! I just had to write this, it's been gnawing at me! Enjoy the chapter!

-Kasimyr

**Crewe**

The cold hard stone pressed against his back, and his head throbbed with pain. Why was everything hurting? One moment he'd been tormenting the Cursed One, the next he'd been attacked, thrown to the ground by... Aris. Aris! Crewe opened his eyes slightly, hardly able to focus. Damn, the kerilin had probably given him a concussion! He glanced around the dim, stone room, wondering why they hadn't moved him. Probably because they were weak, 'kind', Alactras. Damn them. Crewe snickered, wincing as his head gave a particularly painful throb. Damn. He turned his head slightly, trying to ignore the pain.

From what he could see in the dim light, he was laying in a pool of blood. He couldn't tell if it was The Cursed one's, or his. Probably both. He giggled, feeling his mind crack, but ignoring it. It was common, and he wasn't insane. He wasn't insane! He was just smarter than them, so much more intelligent! They called him crazy, but he knew it wasn't true. They just couldn't understand. He tried to lift a hand and run it through his hair, but found that he couldn't. The damned child had restrained him! He tested the bonds, finding that they were weak rope.

He slammed his head back onto the ground, uncaring that his head wound had started bleeding again. Damn! If only he wasn't weakened by the Kerilin, he could've easily broken out of the ropes! Crewe sighed, sneering at the ceiling. That child was going to pay for it, but he had to escape first. He sat up the best he could against the wall, ignoring his throbbing head, and looked around. He could see a few nails poking out of the crate a few meters away. Perfect! He scooted over the best he could to the nails and began cutting.

The ropes soon broke, and he began working on his ankles. Hah! That kerilin tied weak knots! Crewe grimaced, standing against the wall. Why did he feel so weak? He growled, annoyed. What the hell was wrong with him? He began walking towards the stairs, ignoring the increasing pain in his bleeding temple. He took a few steps up, and then saw the brat, Azen, walking down with an armful of blankets and pillows. Damn! In a better state, he could've taken him easily, but in a weakened state like this, he was practically helpless.

It was a huge blow to his pride, and Crewe winced like it was a physical punch. Azen walked down farther, noticing Crewe, and his eyes widened in fear. Crewe smirked, but Azen's terror quickly disappeared after seeing the blood coating his head, and how he was leaning against the wall. Azen grinned, a sadistic smile that reminded Crewe of somebody he'd used to know. It wasn't like Azen to be like that, and Crewe wondered why he was suddenly so cruel.

Azen looked at him for a moment, the smile growing. "I don't know what Aris did to you, but it seems pretty bad!" Crewe smirked, wincing at the throbbing. "Mm. I believe his tentacles suck energy. It's not pain." Azen snickered. "I don't know, you seem to be hurting!" Crewe smiled at him, but inside, he was furious. Who was this brat, to mock him like this?! His broken pride was worse than the fractured skull. Whatever happened, Azen would pay tenfold for this humiliation.

"What? Don't know what to say?" Azen sneered. Crewe sneered back. "I'm just shocked that you're stupid enough to approach me without Seran's protection!" Azen winced. "I don't need his protection, not after Aris helped!" Crewe grinned, laughing. "Not to mention Seran isn't in any position to help you! You have no idea how satisfying it was to separate him from Rowan. How fun it was to tie him to a pole and make him scream!" Crewe was telling the truth. It had been incredibly fun! He had enjoyed every minute of his longtime friend, Seran, being under his control. He giggled again. A sick look had appeared on Azen's face, which quickly turned to disgust and rage.

"You bastard!" Azen yelled, throwing the blankets down and stalking down the stairs, eyes filled with rage. "Damn you and your sick personality!" Crewe grinned, eyes glittering. "How sweet! You care about my personality!" Azen narrowed his eyes, fury radiating from him. "Did you know about Rowan being Aris's father?" "Of course!" Crewe replied, "I'm the one who burned the barn down, after all. I considered taking Avis, but I supposed Rowan's begging was enough!"

Azen pulled back his fist, and before weakened Crewe could prepare, he felt himself being slammed back, flying off the stairs onto the floor below. His head cracked against the floor, and Crewe giggled, (A bit psychopathically). How fun! Little Azen was becoming interesting! The red-eyed demon adviser stalked over, eyes burning with anger, sneering down at Crewe. "When did you get so weak?" Crewe snickered, his vision blurring from the spikes of pain coming from his skull. "Ever since the other brat decided to attack me! What was that all about anyway?"

Azen glared at him, glaring as if Crewe was insane. He hated that look. He wasn't insane! HE WASN'T INSANE! That look infuriated him! He smiled coldly as Azen scoffed. "You attacked the Seer! Of course Aris attacked you! He likes the Seer!" Aris liked Krazen! How funny! Crewe began laughing hard, spikes of pain shooting through him. "That's hilarious! You let your Kerilin get into that kind of danger?" Azen frowned, worry flashing through his eyes. "What do you mean?" Crewe snickered. "He's called the 'Cursed One' for a reason, you naive brat." Azen scowled, kicking Crewe hard in the ribs, causing him to wince. "Explain!"

Crewe frowned. He would have explained, but the kid had ordered him to. He didn't take orders from anybody, let alone that damned apprentice of Seran's! He scowled, fastening a glare to Azen. "Why would I?" Azen grinned. "You aren't the only one who knows how to cause pain." Crewe grinned. "Pain doesn't scare me anymore, Azenvel Renwis. I learned that in early childhood." Azen flinched at his full name, and scowled at the floor. "I heard about your past. That must've been pretty bad." He looked up to me, grinning. "I pity you."

Crewe scowled, eyes narrowed. He HATED pity. HATED the morons who believed they could relate... help him... PITY HIM. He HATED them. Crewe grinned maliciously at him, feeling his mind break a little more, but ignoring it. He wasn't insane. "Say that one more time, BRAT." Azen's grin widened, and he glared into Crewe's eyes. "I. Pity. You." Crewe closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He reached inside of him and felt for that familiar power, finding it and loosening it.

He opened his eyes, slashing his arm, with effort, and concentrating. A bright flash of light appeared, blinding Azen. He saw a huge slash appear in Azen's arm, and then the light faded. Azen's arm? It was supposed to hit his chest! How...? He closed his eyes again, feeling his surroundings with his mind, and then snapping his yellow eyes back ! The bastard had a mental connection with the Seer! Had the brat no pride? Crewe couldn't understand people like him, people who cared nothing about lying and cheating. They were worthless idiots.

Crewe scowled, knowing it was pointless, but trying anyways for his pride. He used his light to slash, sometimes Azen, but almost always missing and cutting air. Damn him! Crewe used the last of his light energy in a huge, pointless slash, missing Azen by a meter and cutting air. Exhausted, he scowled and closed his eyes, resting his head on the cold, stone floor. He felt Azen's footsteps as he walked closer, and heard him bend down by Crewe.

"You know," Azen said conversationally, "I hardly ever get a chance for something like this. I can't exactly act the way I'd like with Aris around... I don't want him to hate or fear me. I like him! He's a sweet guy, usually. It's not like he minds battles, fights, and blood, human deaths, but he can't stand hurting helpless demons. A helpless human? It's typical. He'd rip the heart out. A helpless demon? He can't stand it. He'd never let me hurt someone in such a weak state as you, even if it was the bastard who harmed his father. I, on the other hand, have no such qualms. I despise you. You've hurt Seran and his partner, over and over, and to what end? Nothing! Just your own enjoyment! I hate you! I hate you and your smug attitude!"

He fell silent, eyes filled with fury and sadness. Sadness? Crewe smiled, seeing Aris in the doorway behind Azen, looking shocked and in near tears. He grinned. Azen didn't know he was there! This was going to be interesting. Crewe laughed at Azen, acting weaker than he felt... not that he needed to act much to seem weak. His head was throbbing, his vision blurry, and he was in agony, his entire body too weak to move. Azen's eyes flashed with anger and he grabbed Crewe by the collar, pulling him closer and shaking him. "What's so funny?" He asked in a low tone, malice sparking through his eyes and voice.

Crewe grinned, speaking in a weaker and more pain-filled voice than he liked. He was in worse shape than he'd originally thought. "Just you. You're what's funny! Acting so big and tough. When are you going to realize that you're just a weak-" Azen cut him off, slamming his head back down into the stone, causing him to cry out in pain.

Damn! For the first time in quite a while, he'd reacted to pain. Actually cried out! He fixed a glare onto Azen. The Alactras Adviser was grinning, a sadistic gleam in his eye. What did you know? The brat had a mean streak to him. Too bad his precious partner was finding out about it! Looking out of the corner of his eye, he could see Aris staring at Azen, a sick, horrified look on his open face.

Crewe snickered. "What the hell was that?" He blinked. His voice was terrible! Why did it sound so weak and pitiful? He was in pain, but he didn't feel that bad! _It's because you're insane! Crazy! Snap out of it! _Said the little, nagging voice in his head. He scowled. "I'm not insane!" He yelled at the voice, forgetting himself for a minute. He noticed Azen lean back, startled. "What?" Crewe smiled. "Is there an issue?" Azen scowled. "Damn you." Crewe snickered, and Azen's eyes flashed with fury again. "Stop laughing!" He said loudly, furious, pulling Crewe up by his shirt again, pressing a hand to his head and slamming it down with all the force he could muster.

Crewe felt his head hit the floor with a sickening crack, and the world tilted alarmingly, his vision going black for a moment. He was too stunned to do anything, even cry out or make a witty remark. He could feel liquid start seeping out of a new gash in his head as a new pool of blood started forming. Azen snickered, and Crewe realized that his eyes were shut, his face contorted with pain. He quickly assumed an expression as ambivalent as he could muster, smiling at the sadistic, soon-to-be-regretful brat.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Aris with a sickened expression. He knew Aris was fighting with himself, happy that his hated enemy was in pain, but sickened by the fact that Azen was taking advantage of Crewe, who was helpless and unable to fight back. He probably also felt slightly betrayed by Azen, who had apparently lied a small amount about his personality. Crewe smiled, curious as to how much longer Aris could handle it before running to Azen. He was forcefully pulled out of his wonderings by Azen, who was shuffling through his pockets. What was he looking for?

He quickly pulled out a small box, opening it and pulling out something small and wiggling. What the hell was it? Crewe didn't like it, it was most likely one of Seran's genetically and technology created creatures. As Azen lowered his hand to set it on Crewe, with effort, he caught Azen's wrist with one hand. Azen sneered, snickering. He grabbed Crewe's wrist with one hand, slamming it hard into the stone floor and making Crewe hiss with pain. Damn the brat!

Azen set the small, wiggling creature on Crewe's shoulder, grabbing his wrists and holding him down with ease, a smirk plastered to his face. The small creature crawled around, but instead of doing something terrible, like burrow under his skin, it simply bit him, drawing a tiny bit of blood. Azen stuffed the creature back into the box, and pulled a length of strong rope out of his bag, quickly tying Crewe and hanging him from a hook in the ceiling, just like the Cursed One had been.

Crewe smiled down at Azen, his arms and shoulders already burning with pain. He felt oddly detached from it all. "What was with the bug?" He asked. Azen grinned, sick, twisted happiness flitting across his face. He definitely reminded Crewe of the demon who'd kidnapped him as a child, ruining his life and making him feel unbearable pain and sadness. He was the same kind of person, just not insane. Azenvel was knowingly sadistic and cruel, he just hid it from his friends and allies... not that it was hidden from Aris any longer.

Azen sighed, rolling his blood-red eyes. "Seran created it. It implanted something into a bundle of your nerves... Would you like to see how it works?" Crewe smiled, worry beginning to nag at him. "Mm, do I have a choice?" Azen smiled. "No." he pulled a small box out of his bag. The box was simple, a 5x5x5cm cube made of sanded, burned oak wood with a small black button indented on the side. He grinned, and pressed the button.

The only thing he could remember after that was pain. Pure, agonizing torment. It only lasted a moment, but it had felt like an eternity, and his throat was raw from screaming. He lay limp in the chains, panting slightly with his eyes screwed shut. The world spun around him, and he could dimly hear Azen's snickering in the background, barely preparing him for the next hit.

It happened four more times, and each time he could feel himself drifting farther and farther. By the last hit, he didn't even scream; he didn't have the energy. He simply laid, shaking with agony. He was certain Azen had only stopped because of Aris. He heard running, and opened one eye. Through blurry, agonized vision, Crewe had seen Aris run up and punch Azen in the side of his head, surprising him and nearly knocking him down.

"What the hell?!" Aris yelled, his voice filled with hurt and rage. "Why?! You're just as bad as he is! You're sick! You're absolutely sick, just like them! He's helpless! You're diving down to his level, torturing a helpless demon! What the hell is wrong with you?!" The tears started flowing. "A...a nd... and you've apparently been a sick, twisted bastard this whole time! You're just like him, Azen! Maybe worse! I can't believe I trusted a _demon _in the first place!" He spat out the word _demon _like poison, balling his fists and glaring, betrayed and shocked, at Azen. He turned, crying, and ran up the stairs, leaving Azen behind.

Azen stared after him, eyes filled with shock, horror, and regret. He looked at his own, bloodied hands, and sank to his knees, seeming to just realize what he'd done. Crewe smiled faintly, his 'plan' had worked. Azen ran a hand through his hair and stood, a shocked expression on his face. He shot a strange look at Crewe, a look guilty, apologetic, and hateful. He slid the box into his pocket and stared at me, taking in his handiwork. Everything that had pushed his precious partner away. Crewe stared coldly at him, still in huge amounts of pain, and smiled faintly.

Azen backed away from him, horror spreading across his face. "I... I... I.." Crewe heard him stutter. "You." he agreed, voice husky with agony. Azenvel's eyes widened slightly, and he sprinted up the stairs, leaving Crewe hanging from the ceiling. He finally closed his eyes, letting unconsciousness take over.


	13. Wishful Thinking (Crewe)

Crewe wasn't sure how long he'd hung there before something had happened, but he knew it was quite a while. His slipped in and out of consciousness, going between agony and blissful peace. During a moment of fuzzy lucidity, he heard somebody walk down the stairs, and even in his weakened state, Crewe could tell that it wasn't Azen or Aris. They had softer, unsure gaits, while the Veren were usually self-assured and proud.

He heard a voice gasp slightly, throwing their box down and running to him. "Crewe?!" A voice asked urgently, hurriedly unchaining him. "What the hell happened?!" Crewe giggled slightly, hazy from the pain. "Ah, just a little brat and his partner. Don't mess with them, they're mine. Got it?" The hands unchaining him paused for a moment as the person froze. "Yes sir," replied his follower, Srethic Menat. "Shall I tell the others to leave them be?" Crewe nodded, closing his eyes.

The chains finally came loose, and Crewe fell to the ground on his knees. Srethic attempted to help him up, but Crewe pushed his hands away. He didn't need help, not from anybody. He stood, with effort, and stumbled against the wall, wincing as his already pained shoulder slammed against the stone. He took a deep breath, and stood up straight and tall, staring clearly at Srethic. "Thank you for releasing me; you may go now." Srethic paused, looked worriedly at him, and then nodded.

He walked back up the stairs, retrieving his box. When Crewe was sure Sreth was gone, his knees gave away, and he collapsed to the ground, sitting against the wall. He rubbed his aching shoulders, grateful that they hadn't dislocated, and sighed. He hated this feeling, being so helpless and weak. Crewe shivered, running fingers through his blood-red hair. He hadn't expected that from little Azenvel, and frankly, it had shocked him. He hated being surprised, and the brat had done just that. He stood shakily, leaning heavily against the wall for support. Damn, his shoulders still felt like they were on fire! His looked down at the floor, and saw a large pool of dried blood where he'd been hung, blood that had come from his head wounds.

He touched his head gently, smiling at the stiffness of dried blood coating his hair. He was lucky they were the same color, or Srethic would have noticed, and refused to let him go. Sreth was a loyal follower of his, and Crewe could tell it was more than that. Sreth was always by his side, always the first to volunteer to go on missions with him, always there to be by his side. Crewe was more than happy to take advantage of Srethic's infatuation with him. He snickered, rubbing his sore shoulders. He was glad it had been one of his men, and not one of Kaern's; they would have taken Crewe in for questioning, which wouldn't have been appreciated.

Crewe was just about to begin his trek up the stairs, when he heard footsteps again. Soft, Alactras footsteps. Crewe tensed, but assumed an arrogant, easygoing expression. His specialty. He tried not to relax as Aris walked down, but failed miserably. Aris glared at him, but his expression softened as he saw how Crewe was leaning against the wall. "Don't worry," He said, "Azen's gone. I escaped him, and ran down to unchain you. Are you okay?" Crewe stared at him, a smirk slowly spreading across his face. "You escape your own partner, and then run to help your enemy, the demon that tortured your father, and his lover, for years?"

Aris flinched, looking at his feet. "W...W..well..." he stuttered. "I don't l..like it when a helpless, weak person is hurt!" Crewe glared at Aris, hatred searing through him. "I'm not either of those things!" He snarled at the Kerilin, in a much weaker voice than he'd have liked, "Go help somebody that actually needs it!" Aris stared calmly at Crewe, a hurt look in his eye. "You obviously need help!" Crewe stalked up to him, pain forgotten, and shoved him into the stone wall, eyes blazing. "You shut the hell up!" He yelled furiously, eyes crazed. "I don't need your help! I don't need anyone's help!" Aris flinched, pressing himself into the stone behind him.

The anger was wearing off, and the pain was returning. He went into a slouch, trying to keep pain out of his eyes but failing. Aris's eyes softened, and he set a hand on Crewe's shoulder, which was quickly thrown off. "Stop!" Crewe snapped, "Go find your little Azen and bother him!" Aris flinched, and Crewe stopped, hearing two pairs of footsteps walking down the stairs. Damn, the basement was busy that day. Judging by their voices, it was...

Srethic and Azen stepped down the stairs, both pausing at the sight of Crewe practically pinning Aris to a wall. Azenvel stepped up eyes blazing, but quickly looked sick and guilty as he saw Aris's eyes fill with fear and revulsion. "Damn you!" He muttered, staring at Crewe with hatred. "This is all your fault. He stepped up, and before Crewe, weakened and pained, could do anything, he pulled Aris out of the way and punched Crewe, slamming his head into the wall and knocking him unconscious for the third time that day. Damn him.

He woke up feeling oddly soft. Cracking his eyes open, he saw a white ceiling above, and gray stone walls in front of him, a large window to the side. He was in the main palace. Groaning softly, Crewe felt his head, which was covered in bandages; along with some of his body. Who had done this? He turned a bit, and saw Srethic sleeping, curled up on a soft armchair beside his bed, a book laying on his chest. Crewe smiled, rolling his eyes. The little bastard had carried him up and bandaged him; how...kind. He had always been like that.

He looked at Srethic, examining his golden hair and small body. He was rather cute, actually. Crewe grinned, his insane mind whirling. Sreth's loyalty was impressive, and unparalled by any other of Crewe's followers. He had said that he would die for Crewe, and Crewe believed him. He rather liked Srethic, and thought of him as almost a small, cute dog at first, but was now starting to think of him differently. A major player in his little game; no longer a pawn.

He smirked, sitting up with a wince about to wake Sreth when he saw the title of the book he'd been reading. It was one of the books Crewe had written, "A Dive into Memory", which was a book on how the minds of demons work, specifically their memory portion. It was a dull book; even Crewe himself admitted that. Why was Srethic reading that? The small blonde stirred, blinking his eyes open and focousing sleepily on Crewe. "Wha...?" He murmured, confused. His eyes suddenly opened wider, and he scrambled up. "H..Hello sir!" He said, fumbling over his words. "I'm sorry!" Crewe smiled; Sreth truly was adorable. "Shut up." He said, more harshly than intended.

Srethic quieted immediately, looking down, red-faced, with hands in his lap. Crewe sighed, reaching over and pulling him closer by the shirt. "Listen." He said. "I've decided to promote you. You're now considered my deputy, second-in-command, right-hand man. Do you understand?" Sreth's eyes widened with shock. "Really?! That's a huge honor, sir! Thank you!" Crewe rolled his eyes, wishing the damn demon wouldn't be so distracting. "That means you call me Crewe, not sir. You also have a multitude of other duties now; I'll write them down for you."

Srethic nodded violently. "Yes si- Crewe!?" He said, determination and happiness in his eyes. "I promise I'll be an excellent second-in-command!" Crewe smiled at him, rolling his eyes. "Whatever." Despite his outwards ambivalence, on the inside, he was happy. He didn't know why, but being around the determined, but soft, Srethic made him happy. He ran a hand through the part of his hair that was unbandaged, sighing. He was going soft, wasn't he? Letting this young demon be his lieutenant. The funny thing was though, that Crewe didn't even mind at all.


	14. Mistakes

Alright, guys! The Crewe chapters are over, please tell me what you think! Sorry they were in third person, I didn't even realize until it was fully written. Crazy, right? Well, We're back to Aris's POV now, enjoy!

-Kasimyr

I was angry. Very angry. Why had I trusted a demon? I had thought Azen was different than the stories, not a merciless, heartless bastard, but I was obviously wrong. Azen hadn't lied to me outright, but practically every action he'd taken had been a lie! He was just as sick and twisted as some other demons, he was just better at hiding it... and now I was bonded to him. It wasn't like I liked Crewe; I hated the bastard. It just bothered me when a demon seemed helpless and weak, mostly because I used to believe they were invincible, strong, creatures. I knew better now, but it still bothered me to see a demon laying unconscious or hurt, while humans I knew were usually weak and disgusting, only a few being fit to even talk to.

If I had been angry before Azen grabbed me and punched Crewe back down, I was furious now. "Get off of me!" I spat, struggling. Azen wasn't listening, he was too busy glaring furiously at Crewe's unmoving body. "Damn him!" I heard him mutter. I saw his muscles twitch, about to kick Crewe, but he was stopped; and not by me. A frowning demon with golden hair had stepped in front of Crewe, his dark-gray eyes worried. "I'll take him up!" He said softly, authority in his eyes. "I'll even make sure Lord Kaern doesn't hear about this, alright?" The corner of the golden-haired demon's mouth twitched as he said 'lord', but I was too angry to bother wondering why at the time. Azen narrowed his eyes at the lanky demon, nodding. "Fine." He replied shortly, dragging me upstairs to our room.

I kicked and struggled the whole way, but was no match for his strength. He eventually dragged me to our room, pushing me in and stepping through after me, closing the door behind him. I glared at him warily, unbidden fear coursing through me as I realized I was alone, alone with the Azen, who'd tortured a helpless, weakened demon. If he enjoyed torturing the weak, he'd certainly have no problem with a weak kerilin; Aris was only strong in his slenderman form.

I suddenly felt stone hit my back, and I realized I had backed up into a the stone wall. Azen looked at me for a moment, eyes sad, and then sighed, running a hand through his already-tangled hair. "Listen, Aris..." He began softly, stepping towards me and causing me to shrink back. "I'm sorry, alright? You were never meant to see that-" I stood up, anger flaring through me. "I wasn't supposed to see that?" I spat vehemently, "Of course not! Not when you're trying to hide your true personality from me! It would have been nice to know what I was getting into before you dragged me into this fucked-up world!"

Azen flinched, slouching. "I never meant..." I scowled at him. "Never meant what?! To lie to me for months? I heard you! You said that 'You can't act this way with Aris around". What the hell was that all about?! What kind of partner am I, if you can't even act yourself around me?! You might as well just get rid of me now, because I'm obviously holding you back!" Azen's eyes filled with horror, and he stared speechlessly at me. "W..what?" He stammered, looking sick. "Get rid of you?!" My eyes narrowed. "You might as well!"

Azen stalked up to me, suddenly angry. He grabbed me by my collar, pulling me off the ground a few inches. "I chose you for a reason, Aris! You think I'd kill you?! Why the hell would I kill my partner?! I'm not Crewe, no matter what you think! Yes, I... hurt... Crewe, but that's demon instinct!" I sneered, but I knew fear was showing in my eyes. "You're blaming it on instinct? What are you? A simple-minded animal? Can you not control your instincts?!" He scowled at me, fury flashing through his eyes. Without coherent thought, he slammed me back into the wall, and I cried out in pain, the breath knocked out of me. I was being held up only by his hand gripping the collar of my shirt.

His eyes widened and he quickly let go of me, letting me slide, coughing, to the ground. He clenched his fists, looking incredibly guilty and sad. "I... Aris..." I ignored him, standing and walking to the door. I tried to open it, but it was locked. "Really?" I spat at him, "Locking me in? Are you-" I stopped short. Azen looked confused. "Locked?" I nodded. "Yes! Didn't you lock it?" He shook his head, horror reappearing in his eyes. He rushed over, trying the door with all of his strength, but failing. "Dammit!" He muttered, glaring at the door. "Somebody trapped us!" Azen walked to the window, picking up a metal coat-stand and slamming it as hard as he could into the glass.

There was no crash, no glass shards flying, no nothing; not even a hint of a crack. Azen turned to me, expression grim. He strode over back to me, pulling me into a short hug. "I'm sorry, alright?" he said, gripping my shoulders away at arm length. "I hurt Crewe when he was helpless; and while I'm not sorry for hurting him, I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable, and hurting you a minute ago. Most of all..." Azen sighed, eyes guilty. "I'm sorry for doing stuff like that behind my partner's back. Demons and their kerilin shouldn't be hiding things from each other, especially if one has... a mean streak. I'm sorry."

I tried to glare at him, but my expression softened without my consent. Azen looked so tired and sad, it was hard not to feel bad for him. "It's fine..." I muttered, looking at my feet. "I mean... I guess I wasn't completely honest with you, either." Azen looked at me, surprised. "Really? What...?" I grinned. "I lied the first time I tasted a soul. Those things are disgusting!" Azen broke into laughter, leaning against the bed. "I don't understand you sometimes, Aris!" He said, wiping away tears of laughter. "It wasn't really that funny..." I muttered, wondering why Azen was laughing so hard. He paused, looking at me. "I suppose I'm just glad you don't hate me!"

I smiled, rolling my eyes. "Whatever. Can we just figure a way out of here?" Azen nodded, walking to the door. "Let me try to break the lock again." He said, twisting the knob hard, which twisted easily; unlocked. "What?!" He said, glancing up and down the empty hall. "Who unlocked it?!" I shrugged. "Who knows? Whatever, I'm going to sleep." He looked back at me, smiling. "Alright." He walked to his bed, slipping into it and falling asleep. I was just about to get into bed myself when I heard a voice whispering my name from the hall.

I frowned, looking at the door. Who the hell could it be? It didn't sound like Crewe, and I felt like taking a risk, so I gripped my knife and cracked open the door, sliding out into the hall. The moonlight shone through the huge window, illuminating the small figure in front of me. "Who are you?" I asked softly. "Hello!" Said a soft, happy voice. "It's nice to finally meet you, I'm Ken!" I frowned. "Ken? I'm sorry, that doesn't ring a bell." Ken frowned. "There aren't any bells out here! It'd wake Azen, anyways." I sighed, "It's a metaphor." He smiled. "Oh!"

I forced a smile, "So what are you doing here?" He grinned happily, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "I'm here on order of Lord Tyren! I was assigned to give a paper to him!" I raised an eyebrow, impressed. You snuck in here? In spite of all the demons on guard?" He grinned, nodding. "Yep! Can I see Azen?!" I gave a genuine grin; the exited demon was starting to grow on me. "Yeah, but he's sleeping." Ken peeked in, and then scoffed. "He's not sleeping! The little faker!" Ken walked in, leaping onto Azen and leaving me aghast.

Azen groaned, sitting up. "I wasn't faking, you stupid kid!" Ken grinned. "I'm not a kid anymore!" Azen's eyes opened faster than I could've thought possible. "Ken?!" He gasped. "What the everloving hell are you doing here?!" Ken grinned, handing Azen a note. "It's from Tyren!" Azen accepted it, setting it aside without a thought. "Aris!" he said excitedly. "Come meet Ken!" I sighed, "I already met him." I muttered, lighting a few candles.

In the dim light, I could now see Ken properly. He was short for a demon, shorter than me by a few inches. He had dark green hair combed neatly, his red eyes clashing horribly. He wore dark-gray trousers, a black shirt, and a black cloak with Azen's symbol on the back. Azen's symbol?! Why did he have Azen's symbol? Ken was grinning at Azen, chatting incessantly. I walked over to them, curious. "So, what's up with your cloak?" I asked Ken. He glanced at me, puzzled, and then his eyes brightened. "Oh! It was a gift from Tyren!"

Azen examined Ken's cloak, a frown growing on his face. He ripped open the letter from Tyren, examining it's contents quickly, before handing it to me with a smile. It read:

Dear Azen and Aris,

Has he killed you two yet? If you're reading this letter, than I suppose not. Write back and tell me anything you find out about the Veren that may be useful. I certainly know his person is doing the same with the Alactras. If you have a run-in with the Psychopath, Crewe, make sure to tell me; we need to find out his behavioral patterns, so we can capture him. He's too dangerous to let run rampant, protected by the Veren or not.

Surprised to see Ken? I certainly hope so, that was my intention. I was reading your file, and found that you had an unusually strong relationship with your four roommates in the school, Terhi, Brer, Orenec, and Kenlaes. They are all strong and capable, so I've done you the favor of making them your direct subordinates. Seran refused to have any, but I hope you will accept them. It was my strategist Adviser's idea in the first place, so if you want to blame anybody, blame him, alright? This letter is getting quite long, isn't it? I suppose I'm only writing because I'm bored, so I apologize for the length. Send Ken back to me with the reply, and have a good week with the Veren!

-Lord Tyren

I rolled my eyes; that child Lord was really something. I looked over to see Azen frowning, quickly scribbling a reply and handing it to Ken. Ken hugged Azen, and then ran straight into the wall, disappearing into it. Azen and I stared at the wall, speechless. "Did you know...?" I asked. Azen shook his head, still looking at the wall. "So, he was your roommate?" I asked curiously. Azen turned to me, a happy smile brightening his features. "Yeah! He was three when I left, the youngest. He was always a bit... odd." I grinned. "He's certainly odd!"

Azen smirked, laying back down on his bed. "I figured he would mature with age, but I suppose I was wrong. 'Night" And with that, Azen curled up under the covers, soon asleep. I smiled at down at him, blowing out out the candles and sliding into my bed, falling quickly into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning began with a polite knock on the door. "The Lord requests your presence in three hours! Your food is on a tray out here, whenever you'd like it!" I yawned, sitting up and stretching. I looked over to see Azen sprawled on the floor, his blanket tangled next to him. He was obviously sleeping, but his eyelids were twitching, as if he were dreaming. It made me worried slightly; Azen had obviously been kicking and turning around in his sleep.

I walked over and kneeled by him, shaking him awake. "Azen? Hey! Wake up!" His eyes fluttered awake, full of terror, and he lept up. His eyes scanned the room quickly, and he slumped. "Nightmare?" I asked. He nodded shortly, dressing for the day. I rolled my eyes, following his lead. He obviously didn't want to talk about it. We walked out, ignoring the tray, and down the hall.

We were nearly to the gardens when we ran into a familiar face; the golden-haired demon from the day before. Azen frowned, stepping in his path. The demon's eyes widened. "Hello!" He said nervously. "I really have to go-" He tried to sidestep Azen, who stepped back into his path. "What happened to Crewe? Did you report him like you said?" The demon glared at Azen. "So what if I did?" He snapped, once again trying to get around and failing. Azen sighed, slamming the demon into the wall, who winced, scowling.

"Did you?" Azen said in a low tone, his grip tightening. The demon frowned, opening his mouth, but being cut off by an angry voice down the hall. "What do you think you're doing?" Asked Crewe, who was walking down, limping slightly. "You should know that's it's rude to touch other people's things!" Azen looked at him, confused. "What?" Crewe sneered, ripping the sighing golden-haired demon out of Azen's grip and gripping him tightly, arm around his neck. "Don't touch my property!" Crewe snapped, stalking off, pulling the amused shorter demon along roughly.

Azen looked at him, surprised. "Wow." I smiled. "Do you think Crewe...?" Azen nodded, grinning, and began walking. I followed him down the hall and outside. The fresh air did us some good, and it was very interesting to see all of the activity in the backyard. Azen wandered off to watch the battle practice, and I walked over to a tree, pulling a small book out of my pocket and settling under the tree to read it.

I had twenty minutes of peace, before something happened. I should've expected it, an Alactras sitting alone in the middle of a Veren base, but at that time, I wasn't thinking properly. "Oh, what do we have here?" A voice sneered above me. I looked up to see a dark-eyed demon with midnight-blue hair standing above me, two demons with yellow eyes and black hair at his sides. I rolled my eyes and went back to my book.

"Oh? Not only a damned Alactras, but a Kerilin, too!" The demon kicked the book out of my hands, nearly breaking a few fingers. I glared up at them, and they grinned. "Oh! It's getting angry!" I scowled. "It's a him, morons. Do they teach you nothing here? You know, like maybe common courtesy? Asking a stranger's name? I'm Aris, Azen's Kerilin... and proud to be so." They laughed snidely, looking down at me as if I were inferior. There was nothing more in the world I wanted to do than change into my slenderman form and beat the hell out of them, but I didn't. It might start a war with the Veren.

The middle demon nudged me with his foot, making me wince at the force of it. Had he no self-control? I leaned over, picking my book up and dusting it off, noticing a bent page. "You hurt my book!" I said angrily, smoothing it out. The two raven-haired demons looked at each other, smirking. At a nod from the blue-haired one, they walked forward, grabbing my arms and forcing me up. "Hey!" I snapped as my book fell to the ground. "Watch it!" They snickered, procuring some rope and tying me to a tree. I didn't struggle; there was no point.

The middle one picked up my book, flipping through it. "A human reading demon writing? How disgusting." He ripped my book to shreds, smirking at me. I scowled viciously, furious and helpless. "I'm not human!" I snapped. "I'm a Kerilin!" The demon laughed. "Only humans have such disgusting green eyes!" He replied, grinning. I frowned. "Do you not see the red?" The demon snorted. "That's a very small amount, easily fixed by ripping out your eyes!" To my growing horror, he began digging in his satchel, pulling out small metal pliers with a grin.

I closed my eyes as he advanced with them, bracing for the inevitable pain, but surprised at a sudden burning pain in my back, and then a choking noise was heard. I opened my eyes to see a long black tendril of shadow, growing out of my short, human-form back and choking the demon, who had dropped the pliers, The two raven-haired demons backed away simultaneously, shocked, and ran away, leaving the blue-haired one behind.


	15. Ten-Thousand Memories

_Damn it! _I quickly released the demon, using thinner tendrils to untie myself. _This is so weird! I'm human, except for my tentacles! _I backed away nervously, the blue-haired demon angrily advancing on me. "Damn monster!" He snarled, his dark-gray eyes flashing with fury. A ring of pure shadow surrounded me, an incredible shade of black, even in the bright sunlight. _It's like those dark holes I read about!_ I thought with a shudder, pausing uncertainly. _Should I try to leap over one? _I heard Azen speak from behind me, his voice a deadly calm. "Don't move, Aris."

I stood as if frozen, watching Azen appear in my line of sight, walking towards the demon with midnight-blue hair, who simply sneered. "Damn Alactras! I don't know why Lord Kaern allowed you two bastards in here! Azen sneered back, grabbing a fistful of the young Veren's shirt and pulling him close. "Go ask him then!" He spat, "Don't take it out on a Kerilin!" He shook the demon violently, throwing him a few meters away. "Especially not _My _Kerilin!" I blinked, _I guess he was telling the truth about not holding back anymore!_

Azen walked over to me, a grin tugging at his lips. "Are you alright? Every time I leave you, you get into trouble!" I scowled, walking over the now-shadowless grass towards him. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. What were you up to?" Azen shrugged, "Watching an instructor teach kids about trees." "Trees?" He nodded. "Yep. Trees." I looked at him for a moment, puzzled, but said nothing more. We began heading up back to the house, Azen casting glares at any hostile-looking Veren. The moment we walked back inside, a yellow-eyed demon ran up to us, his black hair in tangles. "Finally! There you are! The Lord would like to see you, please! He's in the throne room."

Azen and I glanced at each other, nodding. "Alright." Azen replied to the rushed messenger, heading towards the throne room at a brisk pace. The castle was large and confusing, and because we'd left our maps in the room, we wandered at random, becoming lost. "Dammit." Azen muttered, rounding another corner. "This castle is bigger than it looks on the outside!" "You're right; its a charm." Came a quiet, tired voice from the next corner. Quickening our step, we walked around the corner to see the golden-haired demon from earlier. Crewe's assistant, Srethic.

He was sitting against the wall, his clothes torn and bloody. The wall behind him was spattered, and a pool of blood was drying around him. Slashes and bruises covered his visible body, and one of his ears were missing. Ouch. "What happened?!" Azen asked, crouching by the blonde. He smiled at Azen, exhaustion obvious. "I just ran afoul of somebody, that's all." Azen scowled, standing up. He seemed to fight with himself for a moment, his fists clenched. He sighed suddenly, slitting his eyes. "Where's Crewe?" He growled. Srethic seemed surprised for a moment, and then the exhaustion came back. "Throne Room. Sixth door on your left, down the right hallway, second door on your right, head right down the hall."

Azen nodded determinedly, "I'll go get him for you. Thanks for directions!" He nodded at me, and we sprinted down the halls, following his directions exactly. We slowed as we reached the throne room, pushing the door open calmly and walking in. "Hello!" Lord Kaern called to us as we walked up. He looked confused as Azen grabbed Crewe's arm and pulled him aside, but said nothing.

"What?!" Crewe spat, pulling his arm away. "Listen," Azen said quickly. "Your assistant, Srethic, the blonde, was laying bloody in the.." He thought for a moment. "Hall C16. He was all bloody and messed up." Crewe stared at Azen. "Thank you." He said shortly, muttering a quick apology to his Lord and walking off. Azen glanced at me, and I shrugged. _He's the weirdest demon I've ever met. _Kaern examined us quietly, a small smile plastered to his face. "Helping him? I thought you disliked him?" Azen snorted. "His friend needed help that I couldn't provide, not without provoking that bloody-haired bastard's wrath."

The Lord smirked, "Bloody-haired? Are you referring to the color, or what it was coated in yesterday? " Azen tilted his head, his face a mask of confusion. "What happened to him?" The Lord's smile grew, and he shook his head. "Nice try, Azenvel. I know what happened. I know you dislike Crewe, and while I don't like him much myself, please don't go that far again... or I'll be forced to punish you." Azen froze, his eyes locked on Kaern. "I understand." He said. "What is it that you'd like to speak with us about?" A more cheerful smile grew on the tall Lord's face. "The council wants to meet you!"

Azen glanced at me, a frown quickly flashing across his face. "On a scale of one-to-ten, how terrible is this going to be?" The Lord chuckled, grinning. "Damn, I love having you around! Hmm... an eight, I'd say! They're... unpleasant." I groaned softly, my head hanging. "They just want to meet us?" The Lord nodded, smiling. "Yes! Just to meet you, or so they say." Azen frowned. "I see. Lord Kaern, what do you think of the Seer?" The Lord paused, his eyes seeming to darken. "Don't mention the cursed one in here, Azenvel. Please." Azen frowned, nodding. "Yes, Lord."

Kaern slashed his fist diagonally, and a large, pure black portal appeared. "In you go! I'll come get you in a while!" He said vaguely, nudging us inside. We walked into the darkness, and wind began to buffet us, nearly sending us flying off the invisible path of blackness. Soon enough, we reached the doorknob. Azen pulled it open, pushing me through and stepping in after me, the door slamming behind us. Azen began fixing his hair, and I looked around.

We were in a dull gray box of a room, a small dark-brown wooden desk in one corner, a white rug covering most of the floor, and various paintings dotting the walls. A few were signed by Azen himself, and I couldn't help but stare. "Wow! You painted these?!" Azen glanced over, his eyes widening. "Y..yes! These are the paintings... the p..paintings..." His already pale face whitened, leaving him ghostlike. "These paintings were..." He shuddered, jerkily running a hand through his hair. "Let's go talk to him." he motioned to the light-eyed demon sitting at the desk, and we walked over to him.

"Hello? The council requested to see us." The elderly demon with gray hair examined us, bored. "Go on in, they're expecting you." Azen and I shrugged at each other, and then walked on in.

The room we'd entered was similar to the last one, a large gray-walled rectangle with black carpeting. The walls were lit not by torches, but by spheres of light, obviously created by a light-eyed Veren. The room was dominated by a large dark-wood table, Thirteen soft-looking black chairs all placed on the opposite side. Each chair contained a Veren demon, seven dark-eyed, six light-eyed. Strangely enough, most of the demons seemed young. I had expected all of them would be elderly, like the one outside, but only three seemed old; the rest seemed only a little older than Seran, who was fairly young in demon terms.

The demons all glanced up at the same time as we entered; a disconcerting effect. "Hello!" The one in the middle said cheerfully, grinning amiably. He seemed to be the youngest, hardly past Azen's age. He had bright yellow-white eyes, and hair the same color; so blonde that it seemed almost white. He was slightly more tan than most demons, and while not as tall as Kaern, was still much taller than Azen and I. "Hello." Azen replied stiffly and politely, standing straight. I decided to take the easier approach, grinning happily at him. "Hello!" The demon chuckled lightly, "Azenvel Renwis and Aris Akers. It's nice to meet you, Azen, and it's nice to see you again, Aris!"

Azen glanced back to look at me, confused. I shrugged at him, just as confused as him. "Sorry sir, what do you mean 'again'?" The demon sighed, his eyes sparkling. "I visited you when you were a child in the woods!" _Oh! No way!_ I almost flinched as memories started flooding back, memories that had been locked away without my knowledge. I staggered, leaning against Azen and gripping my head as memories flooded through, flashing through my mind.

There was me at age six, visiting the demon world for the first time, me at age ten with Avis, playing with the golden-eyed and haired demon we'd just seen, his name was Kuyta. I saw flashes of many different demons visiting hundreds of times, Seran must've at least visited a thousand. I saw bits of memories, Seran giving us piggyback rides, teaching us to climb trees, to read, giving us books signed by 'Azenvel Renwis' "_Da? Who is Ah-zeen-veel?" "A -zen-vehl. He's Seran's... friend!" "Will he ever visit? He paints such nice pictures!" "No, but you may meet him someday!" _I saw a huge flash of a fire, burning in the night, slowly destroying the forest. _"Da! Da! A fire!" "Stay here, Aris! Watch your brother!" "Da! Don't go in there!" "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Watch him." "..." "Da! You're alive!" "I told you, I'll never leave you two alone!" _One last memory flashed through my head, and I nearly startled bawling. A teenage me was standing, fists balled and glaring at Da. "_No! I don't want to go with some stuck-up blacksmith! My place is here, as a farmer, with you and Aris!" "Aris will be fine! You have to go!" "No! I don't want to go with them! Like Kuyta said, normal humans are stupid, disgusting creatures!" "..." "What?" "I'm sorry, Aris. You can't live a normal life with knowledge of demons and stories come to life and a thousand mysteries. You and Avis need to forget!" "No, Da! It's my entire life!" "I'm sorry, Aris." "No!"_

The world around me went black.

Hey guys, Kasimyr here! My time is currently divided between four stories, two on fanfiction, the other two on my Kasimyr fictionpress. If one of these stories don't update for a while, I'm probably on the other stories! If you like these two tales, and slash (m/m), then you'll probably like them. Enjoy!

-Kasimyr


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